Aftermath
by Emerald1
Summary: As the dust settles and the body count rises, the hunt for a madman reaches a new level of intensity, but are they the hunters or the hunted? Starts moments after the credits rolled on "Till Death Do Us Part." Obviously AU now that the season has started. Team case fic.
1. Chapter 1

**a/n - I've been working on several other projects, trying to get them finished before posting, but after watching that season ender, man, this won't leave me alone. Since we're all living and breathing that episode, I decided not to wait in posting this one.**

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As the dust settles and the body count rises, the hunt for a madman reaches a new level of intensity.

Aftermath

Leroy Jethro Gibbs couldn't hear anything over the roar in his ears when he lifted his head and tried to look around. The flames coming through the windows back-lit the rest of the lab, giving it a eerie glow. Mentally shaking himself, he shifted back far enough to check on Abby who was still tucked beneath him.

"Abs? Abby?" She was still, her eyes open, but when he reached for her, she flinched. Shock, not dead, and he breathed a sigh of relief. They'd survived the blast, now they had to escape the sub-basement before they were overcome by the fumes. "Come on, we've got to get out of here."

She didn't fight him, but she didn't help either as he dragged her across the floor, slipping and sliding on the spilled Caf-Pow and the water from the overhead sprinklers. His back and his leg were screaming at him, but he didn't slow down until they were in the hallway and he managed to force the door closed behind them. Only then did he allow himself to look at the burned skin on his lower leg and bat at the smoldering fabric covering his body before reaching for his phone. Feeling the shattered remains, he didn't even bother to pull it out of his pocket.

The hall was quiet and dark, only the flickering emergency lights gave them any illumination until finally the back-up generators kicked in, giving a soft glow to the dust as it settled. Sound finally began to filter back in although it was muffled and indistinct. Sirens and soft cries for help drew Gibbs to his feet as training and worry pushed back the pain.

Abby had finally moved on her own, if only to curl up around Bert and start to rock, so Gibbs left her there for the moment as he moved unsteadily down the hall, leaning heavily on the wall. The first two doors he came to were both storage rooms, but he automatically checked to make sure they were still locked. That proven, he moved on, stopping just before he reached the elevator. Cautiously, he reached out and held his hand an inch away from the metal surface, but he felt no heat. He tapped at it before quickly yanking his hand away. There was no pain, so he repeated the move, holding his hand against the metal longer this time.

No heat meant no fire using the elevator shaft to spread through the building. Leaning against the cool metal, Gibbs allowed himself a moment to think through the likely outcome of the bombing. The fact that he and Abby were still alive told him that the C-4 he and Cole had found hidden in the back seat of Vance's car was likely the only explosives, the full tank of gas a planned accelerant. The fireball had come through the windows of the sub-basement and he suspected through many of the windows above them. Those windows would have shattered at the moment of the blast, but the exterior walls of the old building were extremely thick and obviously still standing. It was the interior walls and floors, added over the years as the building changed functions, that he was worried about.

Still leaning against the elevator doors as the ringing in his ears lessened, Gibbs could make out a call for help coming from inside. He strained to hear more and realized that the voice was familiar.

"Ziva? Ziva!" Gibbs reached for his big knife to wedge into the door only to remember handing it to Cole. Instead, he pulled out a smaller pocket knife, cursing as the blade snapped. The doors were open a fraction, but it was enough to wedge his fingers in and pry it open further. Ignoring the shredded and bloodied fingertips, he leaned in and looked up to see the underside of the elevator above him. "Ziva?"

"Gibbs?

"Are you hurt?"

"Tony is unconscious."

He could barely hear her, but knew he needed to be up further to be able to help her or Tony. "Stay put, I'm coming."

He returned to Abby, squatting down in front of her. "Abby, are you hurt?" His own voice sounded distorted to him, so he used sign in addition to words to ask his question.

The moving fingers seemed to register more than what he said. She frowned and slowly shook her head before trying to climb to her feet. Gibbs pulled her up and tucked her against him as he continued on to the stairwell. It took several hard shoves with his shoulder to push and door and the debris against it, the pain nearly sending him to his knees again.

Once he had the door open, he left Abby propped up against the wall and checked the stairs. There was quite a bit of debris. He could climb over it and make it to the first landing, but there was no point as the section of stairs between the first landing and the door to the main level was most of the debris blocking the way. If he wasn't injured, or was twenty years younger, he might have been able to make the climb, but there was no way Abby could. Their only hope of getting out of the sub-basement was the secondary set of stairs at the other end of the building.

As the worry built up in his gut, Gibbs wedged himself back through the partially opened door and returned to the hallway. Procedure dictated that no rescue personnel be allowed into the building or even the surrounding area until it was cleared by bomb disposal. The logical side of his brain knew this, but all he cared about was his injured team members. Two trapped above him, one in shock next to him and one that he prayed was safely outside, arguing to get rescuers inside quicker. He wrapped his arm around Abby's shoulder and turned her towards their new escape point. Silent and placid, still clutching the stuffed hippo, she let him lead her away.

-NCIS-

The sound was muffled and distant, but Tobias Fornell recognized it and was on his feet instantly. Two steps to the window, but he saw nothing out of place, no billowing smoke, no panicked traffic around the Capital Building. Remembering the steady stream of reports about the threats to the Navy, he ran across the room to where a group of agents were already gathering at a window with another view.

"Was it at the Navy Yard?"

"Maybe, can't tell for sure."

Fornell didn't even register who had spoken as he quickly pulled his phone and hit the speed dial for his old friend. At the first ring, a recording came on telling him the party he was trying to reach was unavailable. He looked at the agents gathered around him. "Damn it, let's go."

Mid-morning usually meant the drive was twenty minutes, Fornell made it to the gate in thirteen. Holding his badge up to the harried guard, Fornell jumped on the back of an arriving firetruck, one of the firemen grabbing his arm to steady him. Two more agents followed suit, while the rest stayed with the car, falling behind as they tried to thread their way through the chaos.

"My God." After automatically stepping out of the way of the emergency workers pulling hoses off the truck, Fornell was frozen by the sight of the scene in front of him. The mangled remains of what had once been a large vehicle was perhaps forty feet from the front of the front of the building, but marks on the road and sidewalk showed that it had been much closer at the time of the explosion. Luck or providence had tossed it away from those Dearing hoped to harm, instead of into the building. Nonetheless, more bodies than he could count were scattered on the ground, a testament to the destructive force of the blast. From what they hoped was a safe distance, firefighters aimed hoses at the front of the damaged building while dozen or more small fires burned nearby. It looked as if several trees had been torched by the flying and burning debris in addition to a variety of bushes and one very unlucky convertible.

There was a wide ring secured around the building as Naval and Marine Corps ordnance specialists and their bomb sniffing dogs got to work clearing the area before emergency workers would be allowed in to search for survivors. Not wanting to disturb the potentially dangerous work, Fornell gave them an even wider berth as he continued to look for any familiar faces or any hint of a command post being set up.

He spotted a group of injured survivors being helped towards a grouping of ambulances and followed them to the hastily set up triage. There he found Vance pacing back and forth while on the phone as a medic tried to bandage his bloodied arm.

"No, Sir, the building was still being evacuated when the bomb exploded... No, Sir, I don't know why the alarms didn't go off or the PA system failed. Agent McGee would be the best suited to determine that, Mr. Secretary, but I don't know if he even made it out of the building... Yes, Sir... No, Sir... Yes, there is, Clayton. Call Jackie for me and tell her I'm alive and I'll call her when I can."

Vance closed his phone and for a moment, the grief seemed to overwhelm him but, as Fornell watched, he took a deep breath and straightened up. Nodding a thanks to the medic that had successfully wrapped a pressure bandage around his arm, Vance started barking out orders. Once he had people getting head counts and lists of injured, dead and missing started, he noticed Fornell.

"What do you know so far, Director?" Even with most of his attention on Vance, Fornell kept an eye out for Gibbs or any members of his team.

"Dearing played us." Vance looked ready to punch something. "He knew that if there was a viable threat against me, my car would be parked directly in front of the building, right in the middle of our standard evacuation route. Don't ask me how he did it, but the audio alarms didn't sound and the warning to only use the secondary exits never went out. We couldn't get a perimeter set up in time or get the crowd moving a different direction. Gibbs... the last time I saw Gibbs he and Cole were trying to disarm the bomb."

Fornell closed his eyes and took a shaky breath at the news. "What about... what about his team?"

"I don't know. DiNozzo and David were helping to evacuate the building, and McGee... The last time I saw Agent McGee, he was trying to save his files on Harper Dearing. He'd been tracking the man for days, hoping to get one step ahead of the man."

"Miss Sciuto? Dr. Mallard? His assistant?" Fornell hoped for some good news, even as part of him knew they'd rather go together than be left behind.

Vance couldn't imagine a worse thing to happen to Jimmy and his new bride. "Jimmy Palmer is getting married today. They were all supposed to go to Florida with him, but because of Dearing, only Ducky made the flight. I have no idea if Abby made it out."

They both knew that If Abby were out of the building, her presence would be apparent, but Tobias allowed him the illusion, if only for a moment.


	2. Chapter 2

**a/n - Wow, you guys really like this one. It's such a team fic that I didn't list any specific characters at first, but I think I'll put it as Gibbs and Fornell. Of course, I might change it on a pretty regular basis. I'm posting this chapter earlier than I was planning, so I can concentrate on chapter 3, so enjoy. Thanks for all the wonderful comments. **

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The air was much better, but Gibbs was still having trouble breathing by the time they arrived at the second stairway. Abby was also starting to wheeze slightly as the physical exertion combined with whatever they'd breathed in the lab. There was much less damage at this end of the building and they only had to climb over a few ceiling panels on their way up. He tried to estimate how far up the elevator had been, but the best he could figure was that it was somewhere around the second floor. There was no way to get into the elevator car from the bottom, the only ways in were through the doors or through the access hatch in the car roof. Decision made, Gibbs went up, Abby still silent as she followed behind him, holding onto his jacket hem with one hand and still clutching Bert with the other arm.

At the first floor Gibbs carefully checked the door. It was warm, but not hot to the touch. Fire, but not too close, but it forced him to make a decision. This stairwell opened to a warren of back rooms and narrow hallways that could confuse a person at the best of times if they didn't pay attention. With the main electricity out and the halls filling with smoke he couldn't trust that Abby could find her way to safety in her present condition. Getting her out of the building would take time and he didn't know how much time Tony and Ziva had or how badly DiNozzo was injured. Decision made, Gibbs took her hand and continued up to the second floor.

This time the door was totally cool to the touch and Gibbs opened it slowly. Other than the darkness, this end of the second floor looked to be almost untouched, at least for the moment. Watching for danger, Gibbs hoped to quickly traverse the building, but he found himself slowing as the amount of rubble on the floor rapidly increased as they approached the areas closer to the center of the blast. The large duct that provided heat and cooling for the upper floors had torn loose, taking large chunks of the ceiling with it, including the wiring harnesses and plumbing that piggybacked the pipes. Gibbs studied the puddles of water and the electrical wires that crossed them. He was reasonably sure the wires were dead, but before he could decide how to test that theory he felt Abby tug on his hand.

Abby was staring down one of the hallways at a pair of legs sticking out of an open doorway. Gibbs held his hand up to her, signing as he spoke. "Stay here, I'll check."

She didn't answer him, but she also didn't move. For now, that was good enough. Knowing he was going to see a familiar face, it was still hard to see David Wilford, an intel specialist only three months from retirement, speared through the throat by a sprinkler pipe. Judging from the spray of blood, the jagged metal had torn through his carotid artery. The pool of blood wasn't large and Gibbs hoped the end had been quick for the man that always went out of his way to tell stories about his time in the Navy and to show off the latest pictures of his grandchildren.

Gibbs bent down, wanting to close those hazel eyes, but stopped himself in time as he knew how upset Ducky would be at the body being disturbed. Instead, he touched the balding head. "Fair winds and following seas, my friend."

Movement caught Gibbs' eye and he looked over to find a survivor, backed into the corner, staring at the body. "Delores?"

So intent on the body, she didn't register Gibbs' presence until he moved close enough to touch her. When she finally looked up at him, Gibbs could see the dried blood splattered across her face. "Delores, are you hurt?"

"He pushed me out of the way."

That explained the blood on her face. "He was a good man, but we need to go."

"Go?" She seemed confused, but much like Abby had earlier, she let Gibbs pull her to her feet and lead her away. Once they were back out in the main hall, Gibbs turned her towards the stairs.

"I need you to go get help."

"No."

"Yes. Go down the stairs and out the side doors. Tell the rescuers that there's survivors trapped in the elevator."

"No, I can't, there's a fire." She started shaking her head and trying to back away again, but Gibbs grabbed her arm.

"Delores, I know you're scared, but Tony needs your help."

"Tony?" She seemed to register the name and smiled, even though Gibbs could tell she wasn't quite with him.

"Yes, Tony needs your help."

"He bought me a doll for Christmas. That was so nice of him."

Gibbs kept walking her closer to the stairs he and Abby had come up. "Yes, it was. Now it's your turn to do something nice for him."

"Okay, what do you want me to do?"

Feeling every scratch, bruise and burn reporting in, Gibbs was close to the end of his endurance, but he kept his voice low and he explained it again. "Go outside and get help. Tell them survivors are trapped in the elevator."

"Tony."

"Yes, Tony is one of them. Now go." For a fleeting moment he considered sending Abby with her, but watching the older woman clinging to the handrail as she slowly went down the stairs, he knew she would be too much of a distraction. Instead, he took Abby's hand again and started making his way to the elevator.

Within moments they were back at the puddle of water littered with wiring. Gibbs looked around and found another piece of the metal piping that had killed David Wilford. This one was short, only about a foot long and he carefully lobbed it over to hit the exposed wires. There was no sizzle or spark, but he didn't fully relax until they were on the other side of the standing water.

He'd broken his knife getting the metal doors open in the sub-basement, so now Gibbs needed something else to wedge the doors open with this time. He returned to the waterlogged carpet, kicking the pipe away from the fallen wires, his exhausted mind still not trusting his eyes.

Abby was still standing where he'd left her and with growing unease, Gibbs tugged her hand to get her moving. Once they reached the elevator, Gibbs let go of Abby's hand and signed for her to stay there. Again, she didn't answer, but instead slid down the wall to sit on the floor, her knees tucked under her chin.

Gibbs stomped on the broken end of the pipe, flattening it just enough to allow him to work it between the doors of the elevator. It took all of his weight and strength to get the doors open just a few inches, only to discover that he was looking at the empty shaft, not the elevator.

"Damn it." Gibbs let out a yell, using his frustration to fuel one last assault on the doors. This time they opened more, enough for him to have a good view of the bottom of the elevator, only a few inches above the doors. "Ziva, Ziva, can you hear me? Ziva?"

This time there was no answer.

-NCIS-

"We've got a survivor." The yell went up when a stunned woman stumbled out of the building, blinking in the bright light. She was barefoot and was in obvious shock, so one of the firefighters crossed the safety perimeter to bring her away from the building. He wrapped a blanket around her and started asking questions as he led her to the triage area. She didn't respond to the questions, didn't respond to anything until she saw a familiar figure.

Remembering her mission, Delores angled away from the medical staff and walked straight towards Vance as he coordinated with Fornell and Homeland Security.

"Delores?" Vance turned to look closer at her as she approached, arms out. "Delores, were you inside the building? Did you see anyone else?"

She patted his chest as if to make sure he was real. "Sir... Tony."

"Tony DiNozzo?" Vance glanced at Fornell before returning his attention to the human resources representative. "Did you see Agent DiNozzo in the building, Delores?"

She cocked her head to look at Vance. "He gave me a doll for Christmas."

The flicker of hope started to fade. "Are you saying that you didn't see him?

"No." She looked confused for a moment, then her face brightened. "He's in the elevator. Agent Gibbs said so."

More confused than she appeared to be, Vance tried again. "You saw Agent Gibbs? Inside the building?"

Delores nodded slowly as she struggled to retain the scattered memories. "I started to fall and David caught me and then... and then the ceiling tore apart and David pushed me and the metal hit him instead of me."

One tear ran down her face to wet the dried blood on her cheek as she waved her hand at her throat, unable to articulate the final moments of David Wilford's life. "It's not right to step over the dead, but then Agent Gibbs was there and he helped get out. He said I needed to get help for him to help Tony."

Vance wasn't ready to hope, but he was ready to act. "Which elevator, Delores?"

"The one by my office." A second tear joined the first and she wiped at her face, leaving a bloody smear.

With several elevators in the large building, that was an important clue. "Okay, thank you, Delores."

"You're going to go help them?"

Fornell was already talking to the detachment of Marines that had been sweeping that side of the building, so Vance gave her a smile. "Yeah, we're going to go help them."

"That's good, because..." She frowned as she stumbled over the words. "Because Agent Gibbs didn't look very good."

She was getting paler and her hands were shaking now that her mission had been accomplished. Vance waved over a medic to take care of her and limped over to join Fornell just as his conversation with the young lieutenant became heated.

"I'm sorry, Sir, but we haven't finished sweeping the exterior of the building and we haven't even started on the inside. Protocols are in place for a reason. Terrorists often plant secondary devices designed to kill the rescue teams."

"Don't you think I know that? I helped write the damned protocol." Fornell was jabbing him in the chest with his index finger. "Now either help me or find somebody with enough balls to do it for you."

"I might be short on the balls department, but I owe Gibbs. Will that do?"

Fornell turned at the feminine voice to see Sergeant Heather Dempsey, a woman he hadn't seen since she'd used one of the FBI's Executive Assistant Directors to get at the man that shot her brother. Supportive of her actions, Gibbs had smoothed things over with the brass and talked the ATF into not filing charges against her.

The pencil pushed backed down at the arrival of the field expert and Fornell gave a grim nod. "Yeah, that'll do."

A few of Dempsey's men joined them, one a medic, while she turned to Vance. "Director, do you have any idea where to start looking?"

"Yep and I'm going with you."

She looked at the bloody shirt, the bandaged arm and the streaks of dried blood on the side of his head. "Looks like you need a hospital, Sir, if you don't mind my saying."

"Not until the rest of my people are accounted for. Now, let's go."

She admired a man of rank that wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty to help his people, but at the same time, she couldn't let the director of a national agency get himself killed under her watch. "All right, then, let's do this. I've got point. Director Vance, you stay right behind me and aim us in the right direction, but if I tell you guys to back off, no arguing. Deal?"

"Deal. Let's go."


	3. Chapter 3

**a/n - This chapter got huge, so I broke it here. Next part should be up tomorrow. Thank you for all the amazing reviews, they do make me want to write even more.**

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It seemed to take way too long for Dempsey to clear a path the the stairs, leaving a trail of markers so the next wave of rescue teams wouldn't be so delayed. Once the doors were cleared and opened, Vance breathed a sigh of relief as he saw footprints in the dust left by the explosion.

"Look."

Fornell glanced down at where Vance was pointing. Two sets of shoe prints going up the stairs, one from a practical man's shoe, similar to what most of the male agents wore. The second shoe print going up the stairs was smaller, with a heavier tread. "Abby?"

"She's the only one in my agency that can get away with those boots of hers." For that and the fact that Delores seemed to be factual in her memory, the Director breathed a sigh of relief as he bent down to look at a third set of prints, these from bare feet. They were uneven and scuffed, showing someone who'd stumbled a great deal coming down the metal stairs. It was proof that Delores had come down this way.

No discussion was necessary as they followed the trail up the stairs, Dempsey once again in the lead. At the door to the second floor, they paused to decipher the tracks.

"Looks like Gibbs and Abby went to the second floor before they continued up." Tobias pointed out the two sets of shoe prints that went through the doorway and came back out before continuing up to the third floor with no sign of anyone coming back down.

Vance frowned as he tried to figure out what had happened. "Why would Gibbs think that DiNozzo and David were in the elevator up on the third floor?"

"Guess we'll ask him that when we catch up with them." Fornell looked over at Dempsey who started checking the next flight of stairs. One of the medics trailing them questioned her caution.

"Sergeant, ma'am, if Agent Gibbs made it up the stairs without setting anything off, shouldn't we consider it clear?"

"I've worked with Agent Gibbs, Corpsman Adams. He'd be aware enough to spot a secondary trigger, but if he thought his people were in trouble, he wouldn't take the time to disarm it." After confirming that the spider webs going up the side were really spider webs, they continued upwards. At the door, Vance yelled, then listened carefully for a reply.

"Gibbs, are you up here? Gibbs, answer me."

-NCIS-

Once Gibbs and Abby made it to the third floor, Gibbs leaned heavily with one arm against the wall, trying to catch his breath. Instead, he started coughing. Still holding onto his jacket, Abby pressed her head against his back, her wheezing even more evident.

It was a struggle to control the coughing and he was careful to not let Abby see the blood he wiped from his lips when it was over. "Okay, let's go get Tony and Ziva." She didn't respond to his words, so Gibbs scrubbed his hands as clean as he could on his pant legs before repeating himself, this time with sign. Even then her only reaction was to tighten her grip on his coat and shuffle after him.

The lesser used elevator was in the dark corner of the upper floor, a fair distance from the light filled walkways that overlooked the bullpen. Experience helped, and Gibbs was rapidly becoming an expert in forcing open powerless elevator doors. This time he was rewarded with the sight of interior doors. Not in line with the exterior doors by any means, but there would be space to pull the survivors out once the interior doors were opened.

"Ziva? Tony?" Dropping to his knees, Gibbs rapped on the second set of doors with the metal pipe. "Can you hear me?" Straining to hear, he leaned over and pressed his ear against the doors. There was a muffled sound, indistinct, but it gave him hope. "Hang on guys, I'm going to get you out of there."

Abby tugged at his sleeve, drawing his attention away for a moment. "What is it, Abby?"

When he couldn't tell what she wanted, he turned back to the rescue, but she tugged again. This time he strained to listen and heard the muffled yells coming from behind them. Still not totally sure, he yelled back just the same. "Leon? Over here!"

Suddenly exhausted, Gibbs slumped heavily against the wall, squinting at the approaching group. It wasn't until he could recognize them that he truly believed help was there. Abby didn't respond to either Vance or Fornell, just tucked herself tighter against Gibbs.

-NCIS-

Ed Slater glared at his new son-in-law as Jimmy and Breena hurriedly packed their bags. "I know how much your job means to you, Jimmy, but would waiting the couple of hours have killed you? What do we tell all the people that will be arriving this afternoon? What are we going to do with all the food?"

Jimmy shook his head, not knowing what to tell the man, how to explain the feeling in his gut that he was already running out of time. Instead, it was Breena that squeezed his hand and took on her father. "Daddy, you tell them the truth. That there was an emergency and we got married early so we could go back and help. You show them the video that Mom took and you have the reception without us."

"A reception without the bride and groom? You're not an agent, Jimmy, what do you hope to accomplish by destroying Breena's dreams? What kind of a start is that to your marriage?" He liked the kid, he really did, and was proud of what he did, but the Christmas they'd spent in DC showed him how easily the job pushed loved ones aside.

Breena reached up and touched her fingers to her father's lip, the new wedding band sparkling next to her engagement ring. "My dream was becoming Mrs. James Palmer, Daddy. The rest was just window dressing."

Jimmy came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You're right, I'm not an agent, but I am a member of the team. My team, my family, is facing what's probably the greatest danger the entire Navy's ever had to face."

Ed blanched at that. He'd heard enough stories to know how dangerous it had been at times.

When the older man didn't answer, Jimmy kissed Breena before walking over to the window. "I'd better get Ducky, it's almost time to go to the airport." He looked down at the long expanse of beach, watching as Ducky stopped his walk to answer his phone.

"Jimmy?" Breena watched as he suddenly stilled.

"Call an ambulance, now!" Jimmy turned and ran out of the suite. She grabbed her phone as she looked out to see what he'd reacted.

"Oh, no." She dialed 911 quickly and gave their location. "A man just collapsed on the beach behind the hotel. I think he's having a heart attack."

-NCIS-

The Marines with Dempsey quickly got to work, forcing the inner door open and gaining them at least limited access to the elevator. Gibbs laid down on the floor and reached in, grateful when his hand was taken. The hand in his was smaller, but returned a strong squeeze. "Ziva?"

"Gibbs? You found us." Her voice was weaker than he was expecting.

Before Gibbs could say anything, one of the medics leaned into the opening. "Agent David, can you tell me about your injuries? What about Agent DiNozzo?"

"Tony... Tony has been unconscious since the explosion. I have been awake most of the time."

"Can you stand?"

"Yes, I think so."

She didn't sound convinced, so Adams explained what he wanted. "Agent David, we're going to pull you out first before we stabilize Agent DiNozzo. We want to limit the weight in the elevator and we'll need the room."

There was a pause as she struggled with the idea of leaving her partner before he could be helped. Eventually, they heard her speak softly to the unconscious man before she stood.

Standing in the damaged elevator, the outside floor was just above Ziva's head, so Adams and Fornell took her hands and helped her climb up. As soon as she was clear, another of the medics slithered down into the elevator.

"Agent DiNozzo? Can you hear me?" When there was no response, he began a quick neurological exam. Sluggish pupils combined with the continued lack of consciousness indicated a severe concussion at least. His kit was handed down and he quickly secured a brace around the injured man's neck before strapping him onto a backboard.

Now came the dangerous part of the rescue. They had no way of securing the elevator or determining how stable it was. If it shifted while the patient was being moved or any of his rescuers were climbing through the door, it would be most likely an instant death.

The two medics, one in the hall and one down in the elevator, worked together and carefully eased the backboard through the opening. Once Tony was successfully moved to safety, Adams gave his partner a hand and the lanky man scrambled out.

More rescuers were arriving, following the secure path Dempsey and her team had marked out. Tony was moved onto a stretcher and Gibbs got his first look at the injured man. The thick hair didn't quite hide the goose egg on the side of his head, but other than some cuts and bruises the head injury appeared to be the worst of his injuries. Gibbs knew from experience that Tony could wake up in moments or be in a coma for weeks, or even worse. As he had many years ago, he bent down to whisper in the other man's ear. "You don't have permission to die, Tony. We have too much to do and the team needs you too much."

Gibbs next tilted Abby's face up to look at him. "You're going to the hospital with Tony."

She stared at him before shaking her head and trying to move closer again, but before she could latch onto his coat again, Gibbs took her hand and wrapped it around DiNozzo's lax one. "Stay with Tony, Abby." She whimpered, the first real sound she'd made since the explosion, but Gibbs held firm. "Tony needs you, Abby."

When she didn't pull away, Gibbs caught the attention of one of the arriving medics, subtly motioning at Abby before touching his own head and chest. The man nodded his understanding and Gibbs' next stop was Ziva, who was arguing with Adams and refusing treatment.

"Ziva."

"I am fine, Gibbs. I can help."

"You can help by going to the hospital with Tony and Abby."

"Gibbs..." Ziva looked over at her friends and saw what he was seeing. She didn't verbally agree, but she dropped her head and nodded in understanding.

He kissed her forehead. "Good girl, I'll find McGee and be there as soon as we can."

-NCIS-

Several joggers had seen Ducky fall and they had CPR started by the time Jimmy reached them. Now the Palmer-Slater family was sitting in the waiting room, praying for news. Jimmy was still clutching Ducky's phone and he pulled up the last incoming call, hardly registering his own actions until he realized the number he was staring at.

Breena felt him stiffen next to her. "Jimmy, what's wrong?"

"Why would dispatch call Dr. Mallard, unless... oh, no."

"Jimmy?"

He already had his own phone out and was dialing. "This is Palmer, you called Dr. Mallard... No, he didn't hang up, he had a heart attack... Has something happened up there?"

Breena couldn't hear the other end of the conversation, but from the way Jimmy paled, she knew it wasn't good. She squeezed his hand and listened for any clues.

"How many are dead? Well, do you have a list of survivors yet? Okay who's on the partial list? What about Abby Sciuto? Anthony DiNozzo? Timothy McGee? Ziva David?" With every name, his voice got quieter and she knew he wasn't getting the answers he was hoping for. "What about Agent Gibbs, surely he's... no, I understand. I'll be there as quickly as I can."

Palmer closed his phone as he struggled to breathe, understanding all too well how the news could break an old man's heart. The tears already on Breena's face made it even harder to tell her. "The building was bombed."

"The team?"

"Not on the list..." His voice broke and he closed his eyes. "None of them are on the list of known survivors."

"Oh, Jimmy." Crying, she clung to him. He held her close for a moment, then straightened.

"I have to go, Breena."

"I know, I'm going with you."

Jimmy stumbled over his words, not wanting to hurt her. "No, I need you to stay here, with Dr. Mallard."

"Sweetheart..."

"If they're all dead..." Jimmy let out a sob before visibly pulling himself together. "He's... I can't lose him, too."

"Jimmy's right, honey." Ed scooted closer and took Breena's other hand. "Dr. Mallard should be able to see at least one familiar face when he wakes up."

"I know, Daddy, but I don't want Jimmy to have to go back and face all that by himself."

Ed glanced over at his wife, who knew what he was about to say and nodded her support. "He won't be by himself, honey. I'm going with him." Seeing the look of relief on his son-in-law's face, he knew it had been the right decision.


	4. Chapter 4

**a/n - you guys still with me? This was the only place to break the chapter, otherwise it would have been huge.**

* * *

Once the three were taken away and were out of view, Gibbs swayed and then stumbled. Tobias caught him and kept him upright, taking a closer look at his old friend. "Come on, you need a hospital as much as they do."

Gibbs shook his head, but didn't try to pull away as he looked over at Vance. "Not until I have an update from McGee. Where is he?"

"I don't know. The last time I saw him, he was still at his desk. I think he was saving his files on Dearing."

Stunned, Gibbs stared at Vance as he tried to process what wasn't being said. "Are you telling me that he was still in the squad room when the bomb hit?"

"It's possible, Gibbs. I'm sorry."

Gibbs didn't acknowledge Vance's words or his sorrow. Instead, he pulled away from Fornell and started moving further into the building.

"Jethro, wait." Fornell grabbed his arm and forced him to turn and look at him. "Listen, that part of the building, it's bad. If he was still there..."

"The walls are still standing."

"Yeah." Fornell struggled to explain what he'd seen and turned to the woman standing with them. "Dempsey, help me out here."

The bomb expert took a technical approach. "The exterior walls are over a foot thick, Gibbs, but the only reason they're still standing is because there were so many windows that took the initial blast." Gibbs was staring at her intently, so she continued, remembering the layout of the building and where Gibbs' team was stationed. One floor up from the bomb, windows along that wall and oversized skylights overhead, she had very little hope for anyone up there, especially with what she had seen at first glance.

"Okay, the initial blast took out all the windows and the building was immediately over-pressurized. That would have caused the skylights to explode, sucking the fireball into the building and up the main stairs. Everyone on the stairs was killed in the fire, Gibbs." That much she knew for sure, having seen the charred remains on the burned out stairway.

Gibbs closed his eyes, trying to block out the image. "If he was still in the squad room?"

She sounded so sympathetic, which made it even worse. "The bomb blast itself, the shock wave, the flying glass from the windows and the skylights, debris being thrown around, the fireball that went through the windows possibly meeting up with the fire being drawn up the stairs, the ceiling collapsing, possibly adding more fuel to the fire. Not only that, but the amount of water that's been pumped in has probably made that section of the floor even more unstable than the bomb originally did. I'm sorry."

"No." Gibbs shook his arm free from Fornell and started walking.

"Jethro."

"No, I was on the second floor, Tobias. It was survivable, I found a survivor."

"I know, but..." They were approaching the heavy doors on that level, designed to keep a fire from spreading in such a large building. Fornell knew it would be a different scene entirely on the other side. Rather than argue, he let Gibbs see for himself.

The wall was skewed just enough to make it necessary to force the door open. Seeing that Gibbs wasn't going to back down, one of the Marines added his shoulder and it finally opened.

A thick layer of dust still hung in the air, giving the illusion of fog and reinforced by the dampness left behind from fighting the fires. Peering over their shoulders, Vance couldn't imagine anyone surviving up here, let alone one floor down. "Gibbs, perhaps it would be better if we let..."

"No.

"Gibbs, he's gone."

"No! I found the rest of my team. I'll find him, too."

"There might not be anything left to find." Vance's words hurt, but they were meant to be to make his point. Gibbs just glared and returned to his self-appointed task of finding his lost lamb.

Dempsey reminded the two men of one simple fact before following Gibbs through the door. "We Marines don't leave our people behind." The remaining medic with the group was only a few steps behind her, leaving Vance and Fornell staring at each other.

"You've seen the condition of the bodies, Director. It'll destroy him to find the kid like that."

"I know." Vance was seriously regretting his decision to not return to the private sector after McCallister tried to kill him. "But believing he could have somehow saved McGee will be even worse." One last look at each other and they followed Gibbs and the Marines into the heart of the agency.

-NCIS-

"Gibbs, wait."

"Dempsey..."

She didn't let his growl intimidate her. "It won't help him if you cave the place in."

The pain was evident on his face, but he finally nodded at her and slowed down, letting Dempsey and the medic take the point. They made it to the catwalk before Dempsey held her hand up, stopping Gibbs. Behind them, Vance and Fornell stopped too. She addressed them first. "Only Gibbs, Harris and I go on from here. The walkway probably won't support more weight than that."

"But..." As much as Vance did not want to see what they were looking for, he wanted even less for Gibbs to face it alone.

Dempsey would not be swayed. "If you want to help, go back to the other stairs and see what kind of access we have from there." Behind Vance, Fornell nodded his understanding and tugged Vance back with him.

After it was down to the three of them, Dempsey squatted down before laying prone on the damaged catwalk. Harris followed suit as did Gibbs a moment later, understanding that the safest way to traverse the distance was to keep their body weight spread out. Laying flat, the tilt of the walkway was obvious, dipping significantly before climbing back up at the next support.

Almost to the stairs, Gibbs risked lifting his head to see down onto the second floor. The familiar landscape was gone, the cubicle walls that defined the work spaces tossed around, everything covered with a thick layer of the heavy, gritty dust created from the destruction of the blast. Three bodies were immediately visible, two near the windows were badly burned, while the third appeared to have fallen beyond the fireball that had come through the windows, but also short of the fireball that had come up the stairway.

Covered in the dust, a backpack partially covering his face, it wasn't immediately evident who the body was, that was except to the man that had watched his back for almost nine years.

"McGee."

Gibbs looked closer, McGee's left hand was against his side, his right arm was out to the side. Streaks in the dirt by his outstretched arm and his legs told of desperate attempts to rescue himself, but now his body was unmoving.

The stairs were partially collapsed, but Gibbs didn't wait for ropes. Instead, he used the twisted remnants of the railing as a ladder, ignoring the pain in his knee as he jumped the last few feet. Cursing under his breath, Harris followed behind him. Dempsey tossed him his first aid pack and tied a rope to the sturdiest thing she could find before she also made the trek.

Popping and grinding could still be heard within the structure as it continued to cool and settle, but Gibbs ignored everything except the man he'd been determined to find. It wasn't until he saw Tim's right hand twitch that Gibbs took a breath.

"Hey, McGee, we've got you. You're safe now." Gibbs pushed the bag out of the way, overjoyed to see open eyes blinking slowly, but his worry returned when Tim didn't seem to realize he was there. "Tim? Hey, buddy, can you hear me?"

The gentle touch to the side of his face energized the semi-aware man and he began to frantically struggle. Harris clamped down on his shoulders to prevent him from hurting himself while Gibbs held his face and continued talking to him.

"Tim, easy. It's Gibbs."

Harris had seen this kind of reaction before. Blinded by the flash, deafened by the blast, soldiers would fight, convinced they were still under attack. "He can't see or hear you, sir."

Gibbs had already realized it and took the hand that was fighting him and held it against his face, letting the fingers explore. They could all tell the moment Tim felt that distinctive haircut.

"G'bbs?"

"Yeah, Tim." The older man gave an exaggerated nod as he sagged in relief. "We're going to get you our of here. Just hold on."

Tim's hand dropped down onto Gibbs' shoulder before working its way down his arm. Gibbs could tell it was deliberate, but he wasn't sure why. When Tim's hand reached his and pulled him closer Gibbs went with is, expecting the younger man to need comfort. Instead, Tim's other hand slowly came up from where it had been pressed tightly against his body. Both of the trembling hands in his, it took Gibbs a moment to realize that wasn't all he was holding, Gibbs looked down to see a flash drive in the palm of his hand. Tim smiled, the blood on his lips visible past the plaster dust that coated his face as he stared into nothing.

"Got 'im. F'nd hiding pl'ce. Get 'im G'bbs."

"Dearing? You found where that bastard is hiding?" Gibbs saw McGee's hands fall limply away and bent over to shake him. "No, no, McGee. Don't you leave us." Alarmed, Gibbs bent close enough that he hoped Tim could feel the words he couldn't hear. "You don't have permission to die, son. I know you're strong enough to stay with us."


	5. Chapter 5

It was a tight fit in the ambulance with three patients and a paramedic, but Josh Tyler made it work. After a quick run-down from the military medic on the scene he made no attempt to separate them, just sat the two women down on the second stretcher, leaning against each other. The one with pigtails was still clutching the unconscious man's hand and the other woman was holding onto his leg, so Josh stayed in the middle of the strange triangle. The man's vital signs were strong and he didn't seem to be deteriorating from the head injury, so he turned his attention to the hand holder. He'd been warned that she may have breathed in some toxic chemicals, so his next order of business was to put an oxygen mask on her. With any luck it would help her awareness level, so he watched her closely as he started to check his third patient.

"I am all right." Her voice was low and she didn't look up at him.

"How about if I check you anyway? My name's Josh, by the way, and you're..."

She finally blinked and looked up at him. "Ziva, Ziva David."

Josh gave what he hoped was a reassuring smile as he tried to coax more information out of her. "Okay, Ziva David, can you tell me the names of your two friends here? Do you know what happened to them?"

"I believe Abby was down in her lab when the bomb exploded. It was close to the center of the blast, but I believe that she and Gibbs made it out on their own. She is much too quiet, though."

"Yeah? Well, she may not be hearing too much right now and we don't know what she managed to inhale down there." Tyler reached over to the control valve on the tank and turned it again. "I'm going to increase this so she's breathing almost pure oxygen and see if that helps her awareness. What about your other friend?"

"Tony was in the elevator with me and he hit his head when he fell."

Josh noticed that she was holding her arm carefully against her side, so he started checking it as he talked. "The doctors will be able to tell more once they run tests, but the fact that he's stable is a really good sign. Ziva, I think your arm's broken, so I'm going to put a splint on it. Are you in pain anywhere else?

She shook her head but since she hadn't complained about the arm, he wasn't convinced especially when he saw the bruise on her temple.

-NCIS-

It was easy to backtrack to the stairs and go down a flight, but once they were on the second floor, the additional damage was immediately apparent to Fornell, Vance and the two Marines that were with them. The shoe prints they'd seen earlier were now almost covered in the powdery dust that was still falling throughout the building. Remembering the long term effects of the World Trade Center, Fornell briefly wondered what kind of lung trouble the survivors and rescuers would be facing in a few years. Forcing the worry to the back of his mind, he and Vance pushed on, pausing when he heard their names being called.

Adams was coming up the stairs, several others behind him, and they were all loaded down with rescue gear. "We've gotten the okay to start officially searching the building for survivors."

"Are you honestly expecting to find any?" Vance would never forget the gaping hole where the entrance to NCIS Headquarters had once stood, the glass vaporized, the metal door frames twisted and melted beyond recognition.

It was good to have at least one piece of good news to pass along. "Dempsey radioed in, Gibbs found his man."

"McGee? He's alive?"

"Yes, Sir. He's in bad shape, but apparently hanging on."

Newly energized, the group moved into the hall. Adams stayed with Vance and Fornell, carefully moving towards the center of the building while the others began checking the side halls. David Wilford's body was located and tagged, and they moved past the standing water. Once they were at the elevator, Adams called for a wait while the rest of the searchers caught up with them.

As a group they forced the fire doors open, an even harder task than it had been up on the third floor. A body lay at the top of the main stairs, burned beyond recognition. Up here the fire had been intense, but brief, sucked in and out as the blast wave tore through the building. Vance squatted down to look at the remains. One low heeled pump was laying on a lower step, blistered but remarkably intact, the bright blue color still visible in spots.

He knew immediately that it was Carol Levine from Linguistics. She'd been in his office just that morning putting in for maternity leave and showing Pam her latest ultrasound pictures. It made him nauseous, but he looked closely at the body. Her death had not been quick or easy, he could see the marks from where she'd crawled, trying to escape the inferno that had been the primary staircase. Further down, more bodies were clumped together, looking like they'd never had a chance.

"Damn it, damn it to hell." Wanting to hit something, Vance rubbed his forehead. They were a small agency, he knew the names of almost every agent they had, but the ones that worked here, aboard the Yard, they were the ones he knew the best. He knew more than their names, he knew their quirks, knew the ages of their children and knew which ones were taking care of their elderly parents.

Leaving the Marines to clear their path, Fornell squatted down next to Vance, resting his hand on the other man's back. "I'm sorry, Leon. Your people were some of the best."

"Yeah. Yeah, they were." Pressing his fist to his mouth for a moment, Vance straightened up and returned his attention to finding their one known survivor on this floor.

Adams was making his way towards Gibbs, McGee and the two Marines with a backboard and supplies. He was on his hands and knees, pushing the gear in front of him. One of the other Marines stopped Vance and Fornell from following.

"I'm sorry, sirs, but the floor has separated from the wall, we can't risk any extra weight over there."

Vance nodded and watched as Adams reached the injured man and they quickly transferred him to the board. The group immediately began moving straight back to the less damaged part of the floor, Dempsey supporting Gibbs.

The rescue teams crept along the back wall until they were well clear of the worst of the damage before moving to join Vance and Fornell. Only then did they start treating their patient. The Director knew that the greater the damage and shock, the more fluid they would try to pump into a patient and Vance didn't have to be told that McGee was in serious trouble when they immediately started IV's in both arms. As they were securing McGee better for the trip down the stairs, Gibbs swayed and then his knees buckled, taking Dempsey down with him.

"Gibbs!" Fornell was the closest and grabbed him, keeping him upright. "Okay, Gunny, you found your team, now let's get you taken care of."

Adrenalin spent, Gibbs was losing the battle to stay conscious, but he still struggled to stand back up. "Dearing..."

Every agency in the country would be after him now, but for Fornell it was personal. "Take care of your people, we'll get him, Jethro."

Gibbs sank back down onto the floor. "McGee found him." He placed the flash drive in Fornell's hand, pushing the other man's fingers up and around it to keep it safe. "He stayed at his desk to save what he found, Tobias. He was willing to die for it. You use it, you find that bastard and you take him out. You got it?"

"I got it."

-NCIS-

Arriving at Bethesda, orderlies came out to assist moving the newly arrived patients into the hospital. Tony's gurney was quickly wheeled in, while wheelchairs were brought for the two women. Abby was transferred easily, and while she did not seem any more aware of her surroundings, she did hold the oxygen mask against her face once her hand was placed there.

Ziva wanted to argue, but she found herself suddenly exhausted and her trembling legs could only hold her up long enough to climb down from the back of the ambulance. Being less injured, she and Abby were taken to the waiting room, where a temporary triage had been set up. Nurses quickly and efficiently checked their wounds, pulse and blood pressure and one of them listened to Abby's breathing with a stethoscope. Stickers with hastily written numbers were pressed onto their shirts, Abby a number two, while Ziva was tagged as a number three.

Looking around the room, there were a lot of familiar faces. Fred from accounting, leaning against the wall with an icepack against his upper arm was also wearing a number three, while one of the evidence technicians, her face covered with blood sported a number two.

Number ones, like Tony, had gone straight into the emergency room. Ziva knew it could be a long wait, so she turned her attention to Abby, taking the hand that was not holding the oxygen mask and began softly singing. She didn't know if Abby could hear her, but the familiar song her mother had sung to her made Ziva feel a little bit better as she glanced up at the clock. She would give herself fifteen minutes to rest, then she would determine what needed to be done.

-NCIS-

Vance watched as the ambulance pulled out of the Yard. McGee and now Gibbs were being frantically treated for potentially life threatening injuries. He felt guilty for not recognizing Gibbs' deteriorating condition, but not even the medics with them had realized it until he'd gone down, coughing up blood. Leon pressed a hand to his own aching head before turning back to the on-site triage for an update.

The injured that remained were being well cared for. By now it was mostly superficial cuts and bruises, plus a great deal of shock, especially among the support staff. Survivors were hugging each other, gaining comfort in their survival and grieving those they had lost. Vance checked with as many of them as he could, offering a few words of comfort and thanks, a pat on the back and a few hugs of his own.

One of the Navy medics looked up as Vance walked through. "I thought I sent you to the hospital."

"After my people are all taken care of."

One woman walked up to him, crying and wringing her hands. It took a few seconds to see past the soot smudges and red eyes to recognize Valerie, from dispatch. "I'm sorry, Sir. I was just following protocol, when I called Dr. Mallard."

Vance closed his eyes for a moment. Ducky was more than seven hundred miles away, the only person who was able to leave for Jimmy Palmer's wedding. Even though he needed the gentle man's calm strength and level head with him right now, he couldn't imagine a worse phone call to get in the middle of such a joyous occasion. It took him a second to realize that she was still talking.

"I thought he'd hung up. I guess I'm so used to Agent Gibbs hanging up on me, that I didn't realize what had happened."

"Which was?"

"He had a heart attack."

"What?" Vance stared at her, not fully comprehending.

She started crying harder, the stresses of the day too much for even this usually unflappable woman. "I didn't even know until his assistant called me back."

"Jimmy? Did he say how..."

"He just asked for an update and then said he was on his way back. I'm sorry, Sir, I forgot they were at his wedding."

"It's not your fault." Struggling to maintain a calm appearance, Vance handed her off to one of the other survivors and quickly stepped away to call Palmer. He'd been ridiculed at times for having so many of his employees' cell numbers saved in his phone, but now he was grateful. Palmer's phone rang only once before going to voice mail, a sure sign that it was either off or out of range. The only other number he had of anyone down there was Ducky's, so he tried it, hoping to have it answered by anyone.

On the second ring it was answered by a sad and frightened sounding woman and Vance immediately guessed who it was. "Breena? This is Director Vance."

-NCIS-

Cal Miller had lost track of how many trips he'd made to the Naval Yard that day, as he once again threaded his ambulance through the crowded roads. He'd been a paramedic for almost twenty years, but there had only been one other day like this. In the back, he could hear his partner frantically work on one of his patients. The kid had massive internal injuries and Cal seriously doubted that he'd survive the trip. Determined to not deliver another dead body to the hospital, he pushed the ambulance even harder.

-NCIS-

Jackie Vance, her children and the agent assigned to protect them sat in the living room, watching ZNN's live coverage of the bomb blast that had ripped through the building. Clayton had assured her that he'd spoken to Leon and he was fine, but she wouldn't relax until she'd seen him for herself. The images were disjointed as they bounced from one camera to another, even the reporters at ZNN headquarters were having trouble identifying what they were watching.

"Look, is that Daddy?"

"Where?" Jackie leaned closer, promising herself that when this was over, they were going to buy that sixty-two inch television the kids had been hinting at.

-NCIS-

It had been a steady stream of people in and out of Jackson's store that day while the television played in the background. Each purchase was small, but the hugs, the encouraging nods and the squeezed hands, meant more than money could buy as he stared at the silent phone on the counter. "Ring, damn it, ring."

Meanwhile, in New York, a lonely man sat at an anonymous bar, clinging to his drink to hide his shaking hands as he watched the news. "Don't you die, Junior. Don't you die."

Across the ocean, Eli David had been just finishing dinner when the first unverified reports came in. Now he sat in one of the bunkers at Mossad's headquarters, pouring over every report, watching every newsfeed. "Be safe, my darling daughter, be safe."

* * *

**a/n - How's this for a nice meaty chapter? There was a father missing? Hmm, I wonder why that is... I'll be back soon with another chapter. In the meantime, use that big blue button to whine or encourage or both.**


	6. Chapter 6

Sitting outside the cardiac care unit, Breena Palmer slowly twisted the new ring on her finger as she stared out into space. Her mother had finally gone out to deal with the abandoned wedding reception, promising to bring back some food. Ducky's phone lay on the table beside her own and it buzzed and vibrated across the table as the display lit up. Recognizing the name, but terrified of what news the call would bring, she picked it up.

"He.. hello?"

_Breena, this is Director Vance._

"Jimmy's on his way. Are they... is his team... were there any survivors?" She couldn't quite hold back the sob as she waited for the answer.

_There's some critical injuries, but Gibbs' team all survived the blast. Tell me about Dr. Mallard, Breena._

"He's alive, but still unconscious. How did you know?" Breena listened carefully as he told her about how the protocols were followed after the bomb exploded, how upset the dispatcher was at the result, how worried the survivors would be about their friend.

"There's no way she could have known. Tell her not to worry, Jimmy saw Dr. Mallard collapse and there were people nearby, so he got help almost immediately." Breena continued on, almost tentatively. "It will help, too, to be able to tell him that Agent Gibbs and the others are still alive."

_I hope so, but I have to warn you, some of the injuries were pretty bad. You said that Palmer is on his way here?_

"Yes, Sir." She thought about the brief phone call she'd gotten from him before boarding the cargo plane at NAS Jacksonville. "He went to the air base in Jacksonville, told them he was the only uninjured medical examiner for NCIS and made them fly him up there. Could you please make sure he doesn't get into any trouble?"

_What he did was absolutely correct and showed a lot of initiative. He won't be in trouble._

She could hear a touch of amusement in his voice, even under all the strain. "Thank you, Sir. My dad went with him. He's a mortician and he wanted to help – and he didn't want Jimmy to face that alone. I'm going to stay with Dr. Mallard so he's not surrounded by strangers."

_That's good, Breena, that's real good. Keep me posted on his condition._

-NCIS-

"Abby? Abby, are you back with me?" Ziva leaned close as she saw the green eyes begin to dart around. When Ziva moved into her line of sight, Abby let out a shriek.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh, my God." Panicking, Abby pulled off the mask and threw it, trying to back away. "No, no, where's Gibbs? What happened? I can't... I can't..." Her hands went up to the sides of her head as she realized that she couldn't hear herself. "Ziva!"

Remembering that Abby could read lips, Ziva reached out and turned the other wheelchair to face hers, before holding her hand out. When Abby grabbed her hand, Ziva spoke slowly, hoping she'd be understood. "Abby, read my lips. Read my lips."

It took a few seconds, but eventually Abby was looking at Ziva's face. Ziva smiled and squeezed her hand. "Are you with me, Abby?"

Abby nodded, letting go of Ziva's hand to reach out and touch her face, as if assuring herself that the other woman was real. "A bomb?" She started coughing and Ziva handed her back the oxygen mask.

"Keep that on, Abby. You breathed in some toxic fumes in the lab. I will explain what I can, all right?" When Abby nodded again, Ziva continued, telling her what she knew. "Yes, Dearing planted a bomb in the Director's car. We are alive, Tony is hurt, but alive. Gibbs is alive. Vance is alive."

Staring intently at Ziva's mouth so she wouldn't miss a word, Abby waited for the last name on her mental list. When it didn't come, she started to tear up. "McGee?"

"I have not seen him, but he had plenty of time to escape. Gibbs went to get him." Ziva was more worried than she let on, but the arrival of a man in scrubs interrupted the conversation.

Dr. Brad Pitt had been on his way out the door when the call had come in. A terrorist attack at the Navy Yard, resulting in the 'all hands on deck' had instantly ended his vacation plans. As a pulmonologist he usually would have few patients in the first wave after an explosion. Respiratory issues often didn't develop right away, but he'd been told one of the victims had been in the forensic lab during the explosion and was experiencing breathing difficulties.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Brad Pitt." He waited for the usual smirks, but both women just looked at him.

Abby stared, his angle to her making it difficult to read his words while Ziva spoke. She hadn't been around at the time, but she'd certainly heard the stories. "You took care of Tony when he had the plague."

That was a case he'd never forget. "Tony DiNozzo? Is he here?"

"Yes, still unconscious." Ziva glanced over his shoulder at the door into the advanced trauma unit.

"All right, I'll check on him in a few minutes." He noted the numbered tags before glancing down at the basic chart he had in his hands. "It says here that you were in the lab at the time of the explosion, is that correct?"

"She can't hear you." Ziva found herself in the role of advocate as she explained what she knew of Abby's condition.

It was a little unorthodox, but Pitt decided to take both women back to the exam room. An extra shift of nurses were arriving to help and he pulled one aside to assist him with his twin patients.

-NCIS-

Ed Slater leaned back against the cargo net that was his seat for the flight as he studied his new son-in-law. He'd been shocked when they'd arrived at the air base and Jimmy pulled out his NCIS badge and started barking orders. Less than ten minutes later they were on a C-12 Huron hurtling down the runway.

The quiet, timid man his daughter married had a spine of steel when it counted. Ed had known for quite some time that she'd be loved, now he knew she'd be protected. Relieved at that thought, the older man turned his attention to what awaited them in DC. He'd been a mortician for many years, death didn't bother him, but retrieving the bodies from the site of a disaster was something entirely different. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he tried to prepare himself mentally for what they were going to face. If Jimmy could do it, then he sure as hell could.

-NCIS-

Clayton Jarvis felt much more comfortable in his office or sweeping into Vance's office unannounced, but it was important that he put in an appearance at the Yard, now that it was secure. If nothing else, the press would be at the gates capturing footage for the six o'clock news. As his SUV was waved through the main gate, he reviewed the statement he'd prepared, making sure all the necessary points were covered. They'd spend a few minutes surveying the damage, getting an update from Vance, and then he'd hold a quick press conference on his way back. He'd be done in time to prepare for dinner at the White House. He didn't even bother to look up until his driver spoke to him in a hushed tone.

"Sir, we're here."

Shoving his notes in his pocket, Jarvis stepped out, getting his first look at the devastation. The brick walls were mostly still standing, but the large expanse of glass windows and doors that made up the front of the building were totally gone. Fragments of glass crunched underfoot as he stepped away from his vehicle and stared. Across the front of the building, the once bright red brick walls were now blackened from both the explosives and the fire. Even the sidewalk was cracked, the curb shattered.

Through the gaping hole in what was once a landmark building, tarp covered bodies could be seen. "My God, it's a miracle anyone survived."

"Yes, Sir." His driver looked as troubled as Jarvis felt and his security moved closer as several voices called out. Jarvis looked back at a group of reporters pushing against the barricade. He'd forgotten that a group of reporters had been covering a ceremony on the Barry that morning. Apparently they'd gotten the scoop of a lifetime by being inside the Yard before security shut down the gates.

"Mr. Secretary, do you have a statement?"

"How did the bomber get onto the Yard, Mr. Secretary?

"Secretary Jarvis, do we know how many deaths have been reported?"

"Sir, is there a suspect in custody?"

Jarvis turned and took several steps toward the group, instantly quieting them. His hand was still in his pocket and he crushed the now meaningless prepared statement in his fist. "No, I have no statement to make at this time."

"Mr. Secretary!"

"No, I am here to check on my people, you'll have your statement later this afternoon."

Ignoring the next round of shouted questions, Jarvis followed the guard to the far side of the building where he could see the triage and temporary command station set up. He silently approached, noting that he was surrounded by the walking wounded. Worn, exhausted faces, covered in soot or splattered with blood, they worked quietly and efficiently. Someone's car, the roof dented by an unknown impact, had been converted into a white board, listings known survivors and known casualties across the hood. Wires and cables strung across from portable generators ran a primitive video conference system and Vance was speaking to his overseas operatives.

He'd never bothered to learn most of their names, only a few of the agents, but Jarvis recognized Vance's assistant as she hurried over to the car and started adding names to the lists. Pam looked up when she sensed that she was being watched.

"Mr. Secretary."

"Pamela, isn't it? I expected more outside help by now."

"We're in kind of a catch-22, Sir. Civilian relief is limited because the Yard's been locked down and we're not a big enough agency to have our own disaster relief resources. Most of the Navy's resources are focused on the threat against the ships."

Jarvis realized that he should have stepped in earlier. "Just tell me what you need."

A hand popped up, holding a stack of papers and she took them before handing the pages to him. Jarvis looked over the list. It was wide ranging, from a mobile command unit to hot coffee. Curious, Jarvis looped around the car to see not one, but two men sitting on the ground, each with a laptop Despite the situation, Jarvis felt the side of his mouth twitch. "Our geeks, I presume?"

"The ones that are left, Sir."

"Understood." Jarvis waved his own assistant over and handed him the list. "Get started on this right now. Pull resources from wherever you need."

Vance was finishing up his video conference and Jarvis angled across to meet him. "Leon, what is it going to take to get this SOB?"

Vance explained what McGee had found and at what personal cost. "Agent Fornell has taken the information back to FBI headquarters and with any luck he should have Dearing in handcuffs before the night is over."

"Good, don't suppose you can have a few of our agents go with them? Where's DiNozzo?"

"Still unconscious, last I heard."

"Gibbs?"

"Collapsed, coughing up blood after he pulled the last survivors out of the building." Vance held his hand up. "Before you ask, Agent David is at the hospital with a broken arm and a head injury. Half of Balboa's team is dead, the rest are injured as well. The Pentagon team is scrambling to cover what's left of the network and the back-up servers before somebody takes advantage of the damage. Norfolk is handling a bomb threat of their own and the Northeast office is up to their neck with the submarine fire. I suppose I could go, it's been a few years since I've kicked in doors, but my place is here."

The friendly and not so friendly discussions they'd had about resource allotment pinged at Clayton's gut, Vance telling him repeatedly what his agency could do with the amount spent on just one new fighter jet. "Understood, Leon. Now take five minutes and call your wife."

An older man with a stack of papers under his arm and a cell phone at his ear came up and interrupted the conversation. "Sorry, sirs, but it Terry Vale from the Northeast office. The defective wiring probably caused the fire, but they don't know if the trigger was accidental or deliberate. They're pulling all the video from around the sub, but they can't get on board yet. Admiral McGee's not too happy to have agents underfoot."

Vance took the offered phone. "The Admiral hasn't been happy with the agency for the past nine years, Terry, don't let him railroad you. Have you checked the rest of the subs for incendiary devices? Good. I know you're spread thin, but keep up the surveillance."

"What's Admiral McGee's beef with NCIS, Leon?" Jarvis had spoken to the Commander of Submarine Group Two on several occasions since the fire had broken out onboard the nuclear sub the day before. He remembered that the name McGee had come up earlier in his conversation with Vance. "Wait a minute, any relation to Agent McGee?"

"Father and son, and the old man has never forgiven the kid for not following in the family footsteps." Someone else arrived with another cell phone for Vance and he turned away to deal with another crisis.

Knowing that his presence was hurting more than helping, Jarvis gave a short wave and when Vance nodded back, he turned to return to his car.

-NCIS-

Breena smiled at the nurse as she returned to Ducky's room for her allowed ten minute visit. This time she had some good news and she sat down next to the bed, taking his hand as she reached up to his head with her other hand. She gently stroked the back of her fingers down the side of Ducky's face and the semi-conscious man turned slightly towards her. "I just talked to Director Vance, Dr. Mallard, and your team is alive. Our friends are alive."

She leaned over and kissed his forehead. "They need you, Ducky. They need you to get better." She wasn't sure if he'd heard her, but a moment later she felt him squeeze her hand.

* * *

**a/n - How's that for keeping current? (there actually was a fire aboard a Navy sub this last week.) Are you enjoying the big, meaty chapters? I was asked about Abby. Remember in _Broken Bird_, how she was so quiet at the hospital? It actually had Jimmy kinda freaked out? Remember that and add in shock and whatever she breathed in the lab. Am I obsessed with details? I have a list of chemicals used in forensics and have the safety sheets actually up on my desktop right now.**

**Remember, not too much time has passed. There's just a lot going on all at the same time. That's one thing about an emergency, time seems to distort. Minutes feel like hours and hours can sometimes feel like minutes.**

**Speaking of time, I'm not sure how long I can keep up this pace, I'm writing, editing and posting about 2,500 words a day right now, so send positive energy. Lots of it. :)**


	7. Chapter 7

"What have we got?" Dr. Lewis stripped off his bloody surgical gown as he came into the room.

One of the nurses helped tie him into a new one as she told him what they knew so far. "Male, unconscious, was caught in an elevator when the bomb exploded. Pupils equal but sluggish. Some reaction to pain."

Lewis bent over the patient to do his own quick exam. "Sir, can you hear me?" He gave a hard sternum rub and saw some eye movement behind the closed eyelids. Lifting one lid, then the other, he confirmed that the pupils were still responsive, but slow. "Katie?"

The other nurse had already checked his ID and gone to the computer station against the wall to pull up any medical records they already had on him. "Dr. Lewis, according to his records, Agent DiNozzo was hospitalized about eight months ago for a severe concussion."

"Damn, what's the wait on the CT?" As he jogged over to read what she'd found, he turned to the first nurse who was already on the phone. "Tell them he goes to the head of the line and get a portable x-ray machine in here, STAT."

After reading the highlights of the chart that Katie pointed out, especially his battle with the plague, Lewis returned to his patient and immediately checked his breathing before talking to him again. "Agent DiNozzo, you're in the hospital, but you're going to be all right. We're going to take some quick x-rays of your head and neck and then take you up for a CT scan."

While he talked to Tony, Katie pulled the curtain back for the radiology technician to wheel the portable x-ray machine, noticing Dr. Pitt with two patients as they disappeared behind another door. Once the equipment was set up, the rest of the medical staff stepped out of the room while the x-rays were being taken.

"Do you want me to notify Dr. Pitt? I saw him here a moment ago."

"Not yet. His lungs are clear, probably one of the few advantages of being in an elevator when a bomb goes off." The x-rays were finished and he quickly sent DiNozzo for the next round of tests.

-NCIS-

Smiling, Sarah tugged the last of the shopping bags out of the car. Her father was stuck on the base, so she and her mother had spent the day shopping at their favorite outlet mall. It was a two hour drive there and back, made shorter by introducing her mom to all her favorite new music. Juggling the bags, she unplugged her iPod from the car's sound system before her mom locked the car.

"Is Daddy coming home tonight?"

Her mom adjusted the bag of lobster rolls they'd bought for lunch as she pulled out her house keys. "I doubt it, Sarah. With the fire and the investigation, I'd be surprised if we saw him before the weekend, and even then it will probably just be long enough to shower and pack a fresh change of clothes."

"Penny isn't going to be happy about that. Apparently he was too busy to talk to her yesterday."

"She was married to an admiral, too, Sarah. She remembers those days, even if she won't admit it. Now, let's eat, your grandmother's flight will be landing in a few hours."

Sarah grinned at that reminder. Her grandmother had been a guest lecturer in Hawaii for the last week and in California before that and she'd promised to bring her back a bikini that would send her father's blood pressure through the roof. She couldn't wait to see it. "Good, because I'm starving."

Barbara smiled at her daughter as she handed over one of the rolls. "You're not going to put ketchup on this are you?"

"Without Daddy or Tim here to gross out, what's the point?" Sarah crossed through the family room, turning on the television as she passed. "I'm getting a soda, do you want anything to drink?"

"There's some ice tea in there, I'll take a glass."

"Let me guess, lemon, no sugar?" Knowing her mother's tastes, she added the lemon even as she asked, but there was no answer. "Mom?"

Figuring she'd just left the room, Sarah finished pouring the drinks and found a bag of potato chips before turning around. Barbara was staring at the muted television so Sarah set the glasses down on the table before coming in to see what had caught her mother's attention. "Mom, is it more about the fire?"

Barbara turned and started frantically digging through the sofa cushions to find the remote as Sarah looked closer at the image on the television. The blackened building in the long distance shot wasn't recognizable, so she focused on the scrolling text across the bottom.

...Suspected Terrorist... ...Unknown Number of Fatalities... ...Washington DC Navy Yard... ...NCIS Headquarters...

Finding the remote, Barbara turned the sound back on as she slowly sat down, staring at the screen. The reporter's voice droned on, filling the air with useless information about the age of the building and the history of the agency.

It took a minute for the image to sink in and for Sarah to comprehend that she was looking at the building that her brother spent his days in. "Mom, that's Tim's building. What if he... what if he...?" Letting the potato chip bag fall to the ground, Sarah started digging frantically for her phone. Her brother was number one on her speed dial and Sarah was barely aware of her mother pulling her down on the sofa as she waited for the phone to ring.

Instead of ringing, the call went immediately to a recording telling her that all the lines were currently unavailable. She disconnected the call and started scrolling through her list of contacts until her mother reached out and covered her hand. "Mom?"

"We wait."

"Mom?"

Barbara never looked away from the live feed as she reached out and pulled Sarah closer. "The phone lines are jammed, everyone that is not injured is working to help those that are or are tracking down who did this, Sarah. We wait."

"But..." Sarah bit her lip as she studied her mother's profile. Outwardly she was the epitome of calm, but Sarah could see the fine tremors in her jaw and the whiteness of her knuckles as she clutched the cushions. "Tim would call if he could. Whenever they have a case that makes the news he sends me a text to tell me he's okay."

"I know, he sends one to me, too." Barbara finally turned and looked directly at Sarah. "This is the hardest part of being in a military family, Sarah – the waiting."

Sarah nodded, not fully understanding. By the time she was old enough to understand what that meant, her father's rank had been high enough to keep him mostly out of harm's way. "Have you ever had to, before? I mean, wait like this?"

"Yes, I have." She pulled her daughter close, tucking Sarah against her like she was still a little girl. "When I was pregnant with you, your father was the executive officer aboard the USS Nathanael Greene when it ran aground in the Irish Sea. We were told of the accident, but no details, not for days. Some of the wives were convinced that the reactor was leaking or that they were taking on water. They limped it back to Scotland for emergency repairs. I got a quick phone call from your father then, but I didn't really relax until they made it all the way home."

"Wow, you must have been scared."

"Terrified was more like it." Barbara hugged her even tighter as she remembered. "You almost arrived three months early because of it. By the end, your grandfather pulled strings to get your father a land based assignment for the next few years."

Despite her fear, Sarah had to giggle. "I bet he hated that."

"Oh, yeah."

"If Grandpa were still alive, he'd be barking orders and getting answers right now."

Part of Barbara agreed with Sarah. "But he'd be telling us to think positive thoughts and to remember that the people in the thick of things know what they're doing." She smiled with relief at the knowledge that her fearless mother-in-law would be arriving soon. "Then he'd turn your grandmother loose on them, so let's eat and be at the airport when her plane lands. Okay?"

Sarah sat still as her mother wiped her tears, just like she'd do when Sarah was young. "Okay, Mom."

-NCIS-

It was organized chaos in the emergency department at Bethesda. The sliding glass doors that separated the individual rooms were mostly open and the curtains drawn back as specialists and medical equipment shuttled from room to room. Ziva couldn't help but look around as her wheelchair was being pushed down the corridor, feeling more and more guilty as she saw others whom she felt were more injured.

They paused as a portable x-ray machine was wheeled into a room, giving Ziva a chance to to see Nick Williams, who worked cold cases and whose desk was on the other side of the cubicle wall from hers. He always had an encouraging word for her, but before she could return the favor a nurse quietly pulled the sheet up over his face. Next to her, Abby whimpered at the same sight.

The x-ray machine passed and they were moving again. This time Ziva stared at her hands. It wasn't until they stopped again that she looked up, and only because Abby made another sound. This time it was Ned Dorneget she saw on a stretcher. He was laying on his stomach, his back badly burned, but he gave her a wan smile as their paths crossed.

"We're going to get Dearing, aren't we, Agent David?"

"Yes, we will." They were moving again and Ziva wanted to stop the chair, tell the nurse she was fine, and get back to work, but she was so tired suddenly that it was all she could do to stay upright in the wheelchair.

-NCIS-

Samantha Ryan sat in her Boston hotel room, watching the live newscast. When they went back to some previously recorded footage, she called the SecNav. He sounded distracted and she could tell he was in his car. "Clayton, is it as bad as it looks on the news?"

_It's worse I'm afraid._

She glanced over at Parker, who was playing a hand held video game. "Is... do you know if Gibbs...

_Alive, the last I heard. Managed to rescue his own team and some others before collapsing. The FBI is taking over, but we could sure use your help right now, Sam. I'll get the FBI to track down your ex-husband. You and your son will be safe if you come back._

"No, I think it would be best for everyone if I didn't do that. My being there would cause more problems than it would solve. I'm sorry, Sir." Without giving him more time to try and convince her, she disconnected the call and tucked the phone under her leg.

Parker watched his mother as the next level of the game loaded. She always claimed she could read anyone else's tell, but he could read hers. Alone in her thoughts, she wrung her hands together before straightening out her already straight skirt. "What did you do, Mother?"

She jumped, then covered it by standing and picking up the room service menu. "I don't know what you're talking about, Parker. What would you say if we forgot healthy for a day and ordered the deluxe banana splits for dinner?"

"I'd say you're feeling guilty about something."

She turned away from him and called down their order. She really was afraid of her ex-husband, but not for the reason everyone thought.

-NCIS-

In the ambulance Gibbs was almost grateful for his difficulties breathing because they propped him up, giving him a better view of the man on the other stretcher. The paramedic in the back with them was checking McGee's blood pressure again and, judging by his face, it wasn't good.

"Step on it, Cal, he's gonna crash."

"Pulling in, now."

True to his word, the ambulance made a sharp turn before stopping and backing up. It took Gibbs a second to realize that he was not only hearing the beeping of the safety alarm as the vehicle was in reverse, but the alarm on the EKG as McGee flat-lined.

"Damn it, McGee, don't do this." Gibbs was helpless to do anything as the back door flew open and a swarm of medical personnel surrounded his agent. All he could do was watch as they hustled him inside, one doctor kneeling on the stretcher, performing CPR as the doors closed behind them. The paramedic from the driver's compartment arrived to help move Gibbs inside. "He made it this far. He's got a chance."

Gibbs didn't say anything, just pressed his lips together and nodded.

* * *

**a/n - Umm, was that a scream or two I heard? I'm going to work late tonight and get the next chapter done to post tomorrow. There probably won't be an update on Tuesday because I'm spending Memorial Day having one last dinner with my son before he ships out. A short stop at Ft Jackson and then it's off to Germany where he takes up his new post as a member of the US Army Europe Band.**

**Thanks, everyone for all the wonderful comments and reviews. You really make my day.**


	8. Chapter 8

**a/n - Sorry for the delay. Monday got to be super busy and the answers I needed about some of the dosages were delayed because of the holiday weekend. Thanks everyone for the good thoughts for my son. Our family had a wonderful time with him. I have some notes about the chapter, but I'll put them at the bottom, as to not influence your reading ;)**

* * *

"He's in v-fib."

"Pressure?"

"Can't get a reading."

"Get him on the rapid infuser and start a central line."

"Abdomen is rigid."

"All right, type and cross match him. Get me a CBC and grab a quick blood gas. Hell, run the whole panel and hang two units of O negative."

"Got it."

"Epinephrine, 1mg, IV push."

"Charging."

"Epinephrine in."

"360, clear!"

"No inversion. Again."

"Charging."

"360 joules. Clear!"

"Nothing, Again."

"Charging."

360, clear!"

"Damn, still nothing, Push lidocaine, resume CPR."

"Blood's in."

"Push it, that heart's got to have something to pump."

"Hit him again."

"Charging."

-NCIS-

Tim woke up with a gasp and struggled to sit up. Ropes held him in place and he fell back in frustration. As he tried to tug his arms free, a voice came from behind him.

"Looks like you got yourself in a bit of a bind there, Timmy, my boy."

"What? Who are you?" Still unable to sit up, he tried rolling over, but that didn't get him very far either. "Why are you doing this?"

"It's not me that tied you up. You're a smart lad, use that head of yours."

The voice and the words sounded vaguely familiar and Tim stopped struggling. Calming himself, he studied the tangled length of cord he was shackled with. He remembered a lesson from his grandfather many years ago about following trouble back to its source.

There were a dozen ends to the tangle of rope and he studied each one, backtracking it through the loops and turns. Once he determined the path of each rope, he mentally tossed it aside and went on to the next one. He went through each one, until he had the entire knot sorted and memorized. Confident now, Tim pulled one small piece of rope that was off to the side and the entire knot melted away.

Staring at the now blank floor, Tim rolled to his side and climbed off the floor. He knew he should hurt, but it was such a relief that he couldn't bring himself to worry about that yet. Instead he looked around, hoping to find his mysterious benefactor.

White as far as the eye could see, Tim turned slowly, taking it all in. The white tile floor appeared to be endless, meeting up with the white horizon somewhere beyond his sight. Continuing to turn, he jumped at the appearance of an old man sitting with his back to Tim, his beach chair surrounded by piles of sand and wearing a wide brimmed straw hat.

Nervous and with a growing feeling of dread, Tim circled around to approach the man from the side, waiting to see when he would be noticed.

"I can hear you thinking from here."

"Grandpa?" Tim moved closer as the old man looked up at him, his hat falling away and disappearing just like the ropes. "This can't be."

"How about fishing with the old man one last time? What do you say, Timothy?" He handed Tim a stick with a fishing line and when Tim looked down there was a bucket at his grandfather's feet.

Tim squatted down, letting the line drop into the water. "Am I dead?"

Harlan McGee ignored the question as he watched his own line bob up and down in the water. "Do you remember the time you came to live with us? You were eight and..."

"The doctors put Mom on total bed rest so she wouldn't lose Sarah and Grandma Cooper thought I'd be in the way. Yeah, I remember."

"Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe..."

The old man smiled and waited to see if Tim would quote the rest. Tim had to think for a minute, but then it came back to him.

"All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe."

He shook his head as the memories became clearer. "Penny made me memorize that poem and we read something from Lewis Carroll every night. Dad was furious when he found out, said I was wasting my time on meaningless drivel."

His grandfather nodded with a sad smile. "My son never understood the differences between the two of you. Neither did you. I suppose part of that is my fault. I pushed you to want to be just like your father, like me, and that was a mistake."

"Every little boy wants to grow up to be just like his dad."

"Now, Timmy, in your line of work, I think you've seen plenty of times that's not always the case."

"That's different, Grandpa. Dad wasn't a criminal, he didn't beat me, he didn't abandon me."

The elderly man studied him closely. "The law doesn't cover everything, you can hurt a child without ever laying a hand on him and sometimes a crowded room is the loneliest place in the world. You're two very different people and there's nothing wrong with that."

"Then why couldn't he see it that way?" Tim froze, shocked at himself for shouting at his grandfather. Instead of answering, the old man turned his attention back to his pole and the fish he was pulling out of the bucket.

-NCIS-

"Clear!"

"Damn it, he's still in v-fib. Resume CPR."

"Epinephrine, 1mg IV push, again."

"Second dose, Epinephrine's in."

"Charging."

-NCIS-

"What was your father like as a child, you ever wonder?"

Tim stared at the fish his grandfather tossed into the sand, watching it sink and vanish. "I don't know; hardworking, I guess. At least that was the impression I always got."

"That's what he wanted you to think. A holy terror, that boy was. Needed the firm hand and the discipline of a military upbringing to keep him out of jail."

"Really?" Despite the strangeness of the conversation, Tim felt the side of his mouth twitch at the thought of his father being an unruly troublemaker.

Harlan baited his hook with a tea bag and tossed it back into the bucket. "Yep. He needed the rules and the order to control the chaos of his own life, never learned to look at the cause of the chaos, though. Rules and regulations, that made him a good officer and a good man, but he'll never be a great man because he can't see beyond the rules, past the little box he lives in."

When Tim was a child, he often didn't fully understand his grandfather's stories and would become impatient. This time he settled in to wait. Harlan nodded approvingly and handed him a bag. Tim opened it and found the horehound candy he'd loved as a child. He popped one in his mouth and offered the bag back to his grandfather. Harlan shook his head as he resumed his tale.

"When you stay in the box, you're good at following order. The safety of the box also gives you the security of giving orders. A lot of officers spend their whole careers in the box. It makes for great pencil pushers, but not for great men. Heroes break through the box, they do what's necessary, damn the consequences.

"Your dad needs the box, needs those walls to feel safe. I thought I did, too, until it was too late. I missed too much, Timothy, just like your father is now. Maybe he'll learn, maybe he won't, but either way, it's not your fault."

"I know that." Tim stared into the bucket, not seeing any fish.

"Do you? Then why does he get to you?"

"I just wanted his approval. Is that so bad?"

"I don't know, is it?" Harlan tugged on his pole, pulling another fish out of the bucket.

Frustrated, Tim tossed his makeshift fishing pole to the side as he stood and started pacing. "I don't understand. Why am I here? If I'm dead, then what's the point? I won't be able to fix anything with my dad, even if I knew how."

"Is that what you want to do? To fix things with your father?"

Tim opened his mouth, then froze, sensing that there was much more to the question. His grandfather nodded in approval and Tim thought before carefully answering. "It won't really change anything because I'm my own person. His approval won't change anything about me, only his perception of me."

The fishing pole gone from his hands, Harlan slowly began to clap. "In the end, you can only be responsible for your own actions. It's a hard lesson to learn, took a long time for your grandmother to beat that into my head."

-NCIS-

"Doctor?"

"I'm not losing another one. Again, Epinephrine, 1mg IV push. Come on, kid. I know you've got more fight in you than this."

"Resuming CPR"

"Charging."

-NCIS-

"So, you're really not disappointed that I didn't follow you and Dad?"

Harlan tapped a familiar pipe against his teeth as he thought about the question. "When you were younger, I was so busy agreeing with your father about your path, I never noticed that you were just like your grandmother. You live for the challenge. "

Tim smiled at the mention of Penny. "I'm like her?"

"Always pushing, always exploring, never satisfied." Harlan smiled at the memory. "Do you remember her favorite quote from _Alice in Wonderland_?

Tim frowned as he thought back. There were several passages that she'd felt important enough stick up on the refrigerator, right next to the drawings Tim would make for her, but there was one that she often quoted for her self. "'I know who I WAS when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.' She always said a person who doesn't grow, dies."

"Stagnating the soul, she'd always tell me, and she was right."

The question that his grandfather had been ignoring kept coming back to Tim's mind. "Do I get to keep growing, or is this where I stop?"

Harlan gave him a quote of his own. "Remember this one? 'Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop.' The question is, are you at the end? You're at a crossroads, Timothy and only you can decide if this is the end or just a pause along the way. I'll be honest, son, it won't be easy if you go back."

Tim could only imagine the pain he'd face if he went back. "Do you know which quote was my favorite?"

When his grandfather shook his head, Tim closed his eyes and remembered. "One of the deep secrets of life is that all that is really worth the doing is what we do for others." He opened his eyes, hoping to see understanding. "I have to go back, Grandpa, I'm not done with what I need to do."

The hat was back on his grandfather's head, the fishing pole in his hands. "I'm in no rush, Timothy. Tell your grandmother that she's still my number one girl."

"I will." Tim looked down as a new set of ropes began curling up his legs. "Umm, Grandpa?"

Harlan didn't look up as he reeled in another fish. "Remember, don't pull the rope, boy, until you've memorized all the booby-traps." As the ropes covered his face, cutting off his air, he heard one last piece of advice from the eccentric old man. "A father's guilt can only make things worse. Remember that, Timothy, if you and your friends are going to survive."

-NCIS-

"360, clear!"

"Damn it, still nothing. Again."

Doctor, maybe..."

"No. Again."

"Charging."

"360 joules. Clear."

"Yes! We've got a sinus rhythm."

* * *

Quotes taken from the assorted works of Lewis Carroll.

* * *

**a/n2 - Yeah, a very different chapter, very symbolic rather than literal. However, there are a ton of clues in it about much more than just McGee's father. A lot more. Fathers, their children (especially sons), chances taken and chances missed will be a theme that will weave through much of the story. With as many father issues that our team has, and Dearing as a father driven insane by what happened to his son, it seemed very appropriate.**

**In fact, if you look close enough, you'll see the final clue as to what pushed Dearing over the edge. Did you see it? I feel the breeze as hundreds of computers quickly scroll up. :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**a/n - I'd love to keep posting on an almost daily basis, but my daughter spent about six hours in the emergency room, so I'll be spending more time helping with the grandbabies. At least until things calm down and the kidney stone makes an appearance, I'll try to stick to a Monday-Wednesday-Friday posting schedule. Welcome to Friday and thanks to all of you who have been leaving such wonderful reviews.**

* * *

"Sir, you really need to stay still until the doctor examines you."

Frustrated, Gibbs pulled off the oxygen mask as he tried to sit up. "I need to find out about my people. Damn it, they were doing CPR on the agent that came in with me. My entire team is here."

"Stand down, Gunny." Dr. Stevens came in and waved the nurse back. You won't do any of them any good like this."

The Gibbs glare had no effect, especially when Gibbs swayed and would have fallen if Stevens hadn't grabbed him. The doctor shook his head as he put the mask back on Gibbs. "I'll make you a deal. You let Connie do what she needs to do and I'll go see what I can find out. Who are you looking for?"

The compromise was as good as he was going to get, but he still didn't like it. "DiNozzo, David and Sciuto were brought in earlier. McGee came in with me. He, he flat-lined as we arrived."

"Oh, him." Pretty much every doctor that wasn't elbow deep in a patient had helped with that case, including him. "I didn't catch his name, but we got him back and he made it to surgery."

"Thank God." Relieved and suddenly exhausted, Gibbs fell back on the exam table, wincing as his back hit the lightly padded surface.

Dr. Stevens exchanged a knowing look with his nurse before leaving to uphold his end of the bargain while she began doing the initial assessment.

"Alright, Agent Gibbs, let's get this coat off of you and get you a little more comfortable." Connie made some small talk, listening for any hoarseness in his voice and observing his mental acuity and breathing. "It sounds like you and your team are pretty close."

"They've been with me a long time."

"Yeah? How long?"

"DiNozzo's coming up on his ten year anniversary in a few months." Gibbs had to stop and cough as Connie checked his blood pressure and listened to his raspy breathing. "McGee joined us about eight years ago and Ziva about a year after him."

"Wow, that is a long time. You guys must be close." An aide arrived to help and the two of them helped Gibbs out of the rest of his clothes and into a hospital gown. Connie noted the severe bruising along his back and the swelling that was starting to form in his legs.

Gibbs felt his throat tighten at how close he'd come to losing all of them. "They're like my kids."

Seeing the moment of fear and grief in those bright blue eyes before he locked it away, Connie patted his arm. "They're getting the best possible care. Now, let's get you taken care of so you can be there for them."

Realizing that he had little choice at the moment, he let her take a blood sample and sat through the required x-rays.

-NCIS-

It was a remarkable difference between the crowded emergency room and the calm of the Pulmonary Department. All originally scheduled outpatient appointments had been canceled and the current patients were in their rooms. Dr. Pitt took them to an exam room, thanking the nurse that had helped him with the second wheelchair. One of the regular nurses from his department came to to help him assess the two women.

Brad first squatted down in front of Abby, so she could see his face. "Okay, Abby, we're going to run some tests to see just which chemicals you were the most exposed to, so we can keep on top of any symptoms you might develop."

She nodded and held her arm out for the nurse, who'd been standing by, ready to take a blood sample. They had their own, smaller, lab attached to the department. It couldn't run every blood test, but could give them quicker results on the blood gasses he was most worried about. Once the nurse left the room, Brad started examining Abby, making sure to stay in her line of sight when he asked a question.

"While we're waiting on your blood tests, tell me about your hearing. Are you feeling pressure in your ears, is there any sound at all? Has it changed at all since you first realized you couldn't hear?"

Abby thought about his questions. "It's like my ears are stuffed full of cotton. I couldn't hear anything at first..." Her voice petered out as she struggled to explain.

He tapped her arm to get her to look back up at him. "Are you beginning to get the sensation of sound again?"

"Maybe. There's kind of a low buzzing when you're talking, but nothing when your nurse was talking." Abby turned to look at Ziva.

"Can you hear me at all, Abby?"

Disappointed, Abby shook her head.

Dr. Pitt seemed encouraged. "The lower frequencies are the first to return. I'll have an audiologist do a complete work up later, but it's a good sign."

This time he was speaking too fast for Abby to lip read all of it, but she got the general idea. One thing still bothered her. "Why could Gibbs still hear? He was on top of me."

Using pantomime as well as words, he tried to get more information. "Where were your hands? Did you cover your ears when the explosion happened?"

"No, I," Abby cringed at what had seemed so important at the time. "I had something in my hands." It seemed stupid now, especially for a drink that spilled and a stuffed animal that had gotten lost along the way.

If Dr. Pitt picked up on her embarrassment, he didn't comment on it. "Gibbs was a soldier. They learn to tuck their heads and cover their ears as best they can. So, Gibbs was in the lab with you?"

"He saved my life."

"I'll be right back." Brad patted her hand as he stood before slipping out. If Gibbs had also been in the lab at the time of the explosion, he wanted to make sure somebody down in the ER knew about it.

-NCIS-

Whatever was in the IV was making Gibbs sleepy, but he forced himself to stay awake until Dr. Stevens returned. When he did, he had several small bags in his hands that he started attaching to the bag of Saline that was already dripping into his arm.

"Wait, what?"

Stevens finished hanging the new meds before checking the swelling in Gibbs' legs. "This edema is caused by some of the chemicals you breathed in. This will help flush it out of your system."

"Chemicals? Abby was in there, too." Gibbs tried to sit up, but a hand against his chest stopped him.

"I know. She's being monitored and medicated, too, but so far it's not causing a problem. We think that you were exerting yourself more, so you breathed more of it in and those two cracked ribs meant that you were breathing fast and shallow."

"So, now what?"

Gonna run some more tests to make sure that's the only reason you're coughing up blood, and check for other injuries, then move you up to the Pulmonary Department for a few days until your lungs are clear."

Gibbs shook his head and tried to claw at the mask again. "No time, gotta get that bastard."

"You and what army, Gunny? Your team's down for the count, remember?" Stevens hated to be that blunt, but it was important to make his point.

"My team, you promised."

"I promised to check on them, and I did. Your Miss Sciuto and Agent David are both still be assessed, but they're both conscious and alert, and Miss Sciuto appears to be getting some of her hearing back. No promises, but chances are good that she'll get a fair portion of it back.

"Agent DiNozzo is still unconscious, but the scan of his brain came back clear. A concussion with no brain bleed is considered a good thing right now. They're monitoring him in the ICU because this is his second concussion in less than a year, but they're not overly worried about him yet."

Gibbs nodded, comforted by the fact that they were getting the best care possible. The list was still one short. "And McGee?"

"Still in surgery. I won't lie to you, Gibbs, he could go either way if they can't get the internal bleeding under control soon."

"McGee's stubborn, he'll fight with everything he's got."

"Hope you're right." Stevens didn't mention that the young man had already coded once on the operating table. Instead, he turned to Gibbs' medical needs. "Now, you, Gunny. I know you want to get out of here and go after the terrorist that attacked you, so you've got a choice."

"I'm listening."

"Option one – you stay here and let us treat you properly. A couple of days with IV meds, we monitor your lungs, make sure the toxins don't damage your kidneys. You'll walk out of here at the end of the week on your way to a full recovery."

"Or?"

Stevens sighed. He'd figured the man was going to be pig-headed. "Option two – you go storming out of here now, feeling like you do, and your condition will continue to deteriorate. You've got high enough levels of Fluorescein in your system that your body won't be able to flush it on its own. You'll probably start having seizures within seventy-two hours. Add in the Ninhydrin and a few other nasties that you breathed in, by next month you're one of those guys you see lugging an oxygen tank with them – permanently."

Obviously upset, Gibbs stared at a spot on the wall over Stevens' shoulder. Stevens watched the struggle for a moment. "Your team needs you, but they need you healthy and strong and able to help them with their own recoveries."

"Yeah, yeah." Gibbs let his head fall back on the pillow. "Damn it."

-NCIS-

"Coming through." The crowds in the hallway parted as Fornell ran through, several agents at his heels. He'd called ahead and Ron Sacks was waiting for him along with the best man they had in their own cybercrimes unit. Fornell gave a grateful nod to Sacks and handed the flash drive to the other man.

Lenny Adams had never met Tim McGee face to face, but his mentor at the other agency was always willing to give a word of advice or encouragement as his fellow geek learned to navigate the often difficult task of working with gun-toting technophobes. He listened carefully as Fornell explained what he'd been given.

"That's everything McGee was working on in his search for Dearing. Whatever he found, he was willing to die to protect it."

Despite his determination, Lenny's hand faltered when he heard it put like that. Perhaps it was the fact that he spent his days sitting in a cubicle, shut away from the actual human element of the cases he worked, but he could not imagine sitting only feet away from a bomb and calmly saving his files.

Up until now, Sacks had been quiet. "How bad is it, Tobias?"

"It's bad." Fornell looked up as movement caught his eye. Assistant Director Thomas Cofield arrived in the room, along with the commander of the Critical Incidence Response Group Fornell had requested. Fornell nodded to the newcomers and raised his voice to give the group a first hand account. "The exterior walls are still standing, but the casualty count is high. He knew the major evacuation route and made sure to place the bomb in a vehicle that would be right in the middle of it."

"Damn." The man in black combat gear moved closer to introduce himself. "Chad Patterson, I've worked a couple of joint ops with Gibbs over the years. Did he and his people make it through? Be nice to have Gibbs' read on this guy."

"They're all in pretty rough shape. Gibbs pulled the last of the survivors out of the building before keeling over and his senior agent was still unconscious the last I heard. Agent David seemed to come out of it pretty good except for a broken arm..."

Lenny noticed the hesitation, but he had to ask. "And McGee?"

Tobias shook his head, he really liked Gibbs' geek. "The windows in the squad room pretty much vaporized; it's a miracle that the blast wave didn't kill him outright. I think the only reason it didn't was because he was so damned determined to save that information."

File upon file were still opening on Lenny's monitor and both Patterson and Cofield leaned closer to study it. Cofield let out a low whistle. "That's a lot of info. Copy the files and spread them out. Let's see what he found that was so important."

"Gibbs said that the kid found him, found Dearing." Fornell didn't think he'd ever forget the look on his friend's face when he handed him that drive.

"Where he's holed up?" Cofield glanced over at Patterson, seeing the same recognition on his face. "Let's get this SOB before he has time to disappear on us."

"Wouldn't he already be gone, Sir? I mean, he did what he came for – he blew up NCIS."

Adams had a point, but Fornell had heard about the way Dearing was watching Gibbs and his people. "He'll stick around long enough to watch as every body is pulled from the building. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he shows up at the hospital." A nod from Fornell got Sacks setting up security teams in and around Bethesda while the rest of them turned their attention to the files.

"McGee highlighted this one." Lenny found himself surrounded once again as they read about the warehouse that had recently been purchased with money traced back to one of Dearing's off-shore accounts. What had caught McGee's attention about this particular building was the perfect view it had across the river and into the Navy Yard.

Tobias Fornell did not consider himself a vengeful man, but he found his hand drawn to the SIG at his side. "Patterson, how soon can your people be ready to move?"


	10. Chapter 10

**a/n - It's Monday and nobody went to the hospital over the weekend. Isn't that great? Can you believe my grandson will be five tomorrow? It doesn't seem possible.**

**Just so you know, there's an order to this chapter. It's as follows - Read. Scream. Review. Scream again. Third scream is optional, but likely. You have been warned.**

* * *

Clayton Jarvis didn't even slow down as he entered his office. "I want a video conference with Admiral McGee right now." As he waited, he reviewed what he knew about the man. ,Dividing his time between his home base at Naval Submarine Base New London, Connecticut where he commanded Submarine Group Two, and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Maine, where one of his subs had been undergoing a major overhaul, Admiral Benjamin H. McGee took his responsibilities very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that he had not left the Shipyard since the fire had broken out three days earlier.

By the time Jarvis had his jacket off and his sleeves rolled up, the Command Center at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard was on his screen. The room was still a chaotic sight, as dozens of both civilian and uniformed men and women moved in and out of the camera's view. The Admiral was standing in the middle of the room, at parade rest, his immaculate uniform contrasting with the exhaustion Jarvis saw in his eyes.

Admiral McGee started barking out his report the moment the image of the SecNav was clear. "Mr. Secretary, Sir, the fire was contained approximately twelve hours ago and the last of the hot spots are being mopped up now. The fire never reached the on-board nuclear material and the reactor is safe. The last of the firefighters have been examined and there's been no exposure to radiation among them or the crew."

"Thank you, Admiral, I have been receiving the reports. You and your people have handled the situation in an exemplary fashion and you have my thanks. However, I must insist that you make the NCIS investigation your top priority at the moment."

"In all due respect, Sir, we still need to inventory the nuclear material and other sensitive materials before we just turn the sub over to a group of civilians."

Jarvis shook his head. "Which is why it is imperative that the formal investigation proceed without delay. If this fire was also the result of a terrorist attack, they need all the evidence as quickly as possible, especially after the attack earlier today."

"Attack?" The Admiral looked as confused as the rest of the officers and enlisted personnel around him. "I'm afraid we haven't surfaced long enough to hear about the outside world in days, Sir."

That made Jarvis feel a little better about the fact that he hadn't been asked about the Admiral's son and he decided to break the news a little easier than he'd been planning. "Your dedication is to be commended, Admiral, but Harper Dearing, the man identified as the terrorist behind the other fires, set off a car bomb at NCIS Headquarters a few hours ago."

The Admiral paled and anyone standing behind him would have seen his hands clench behind his back. "Casualties, Sir?"

"High and still climbing. Agent McGee was tracking Dearing and managed to find his hiding place right before the bomb exploded. He risked his life to give us that information, you should be proud of him." Jarvis paused, giving the other man an opportunity to ask about his son. McGee closed his eyes for a brief second, but stayed on course.

"I assume this Dearing will be in custody shortly?"

Jarvis was disappointed, but it wasn't his place to tell the other man how to treat his grown son. "The FBI is preparing to take him down as we speak."

"FBI? Not a team from NCIS?"

"They don't have enough uninjured agents left in DC to conduct a raid at the moment and time is of the essence."

"Understood, Sir."

Jarvis paused again, giving the Admiral another opportunity to ask about his son, but there were no questions. "We need all the evidence that can be collected from every possible attack on the Navy by Dearing. The agents that are aboard the Shipyard need immediate and complete access to everything they deem necessary."

"Yes, Sir."

"Your son is a brave man, Admiral. It takes a lot of balls to know a bomb is about to go off, yet still do your job. Dearing's capture will be due in a large part to Agent McGee's determination to bring him to justice. You should be proud of him." Jarvis signaled to his assistant to cut the signal, hoping that both parts of his message were understood. Satisfied, he picked up his phone and called the agents waiting for access to the sub.

-NCIS-

Benjamin McGee loved the order and discipline the Navy brought to his life and he relied on that to keep his mind on the problems at hand. He reached for the latest status report on the damaged sub as soon as the screen in front of him went blank, ignoring the concerned glances around him. "These temperature reading are almost an hour old, get me a new set of readings."

His Yeoman passed on the order before turning to face the Admiral, knowing the older man would not take a personal moment until everything was back to normal. It gave him the perfect excuse. "Would you like me to call your wife?"

"My wife?" His attention already back on the task at hand, Admiral McGee barely glanced at his administrative aide.

"More than likely the bombing at the Washington Yard made the news and I'm sure you don't want her to worry." Yeoman Hayes waited for an answer, forcing himself to keep a blank expression.

Barbara's MS had been well controlled for years, but stress could have a devastating effect on the delicate balance she'd worked so hard to achieve. "Yes, thank you, Yeoman, but be sure to let her know that everything is under control and she and my daughter are to stay home. The last thing they need in Washington are civilians underfoot. Timothy will speak to her when he can. Make sure she understands that she isn't to worry."

"Of course, Sir." After retreating to the outer office, it was a quick phone call. Mrs. McGee was grateful for any news about her son and she understood how her husband didn't want her to travel to DC. Hayes assured her that the Admiral would be privy to any new information and that he would make sure to pass it along before hanging up the phone. By then, no one was paying attention to him and he was able to make his second call. The recipient was quite grateful and Hayes was sure the money would be quite nice – nicer than he was getting putting up with Taskmaster McGee.

-NCIS-

Dr. Pitt returned to the exam room with another nurse and a handful of IV bags. He moved to stand where Abby could see him. "We're going to get you started on some medication to help clear the toxins from your system, okay?"

"Gibbs?"

"He's already being treated." That seemed to relax both women and Brad watched out of the corner of his eye as Ziva swayed before grabbing the arms of the wheelchair. "How are you doing, Ziva? Are you feeling any worse?"

Ziva closed her eyes at the onslaught of dizziness. "I am fine. Concern yourself with Abby."

Brad wasn't convinced and continued to watch her as he supervised Abby's treatment. Once the IV was established, he moved over to squat down in front of Ziva. She didn't look up at him so he reached out and lifted her chin. He got one look at the uneven pupils before her eyes rolled back and she pitched forward.

"Ziva!" Abby screamed as her friend fell. Dr. Pitt caught Ziva, preventing further injury as he eased her to the ground. One of the nurses ran to get help while the other dropped to her knees to assist Dr. Pitt. They had just gotten Ziva laying flat when she started to seize.

"Get me 5mg of Diazepam."

"Yes, Doctor." The nurse scrambled to her feet, shoving the empty wheelchair out of the way to help protect Ziva.

"What's happening, what's wrong with her?" Abby wrung her hands as she watched them try to stabilize her friend.

Brad didn't have time to look up as he answered. "Her head injury is worse than we thought." He turned to the nurse at his side. "Looks like a slow bleed. Let's get her downstairs for an emergency scan and call neurology. Tell them she just got bumped to the top of the list."

The first nurse returned with two orderlies and a gurney. Quickly they had the unconscious woman on her way downstairs, Dr. Pitt barking orders. For the first time since the bomb blast, Abby found herself totally alone.

-NCIS-

"Mom?" Sarah watched as her mother set the phone down after saying very little.

Barbara took a deep breath before glancing at the clock. The message from her husband's assistant had reminded her how close she'd come to being late for her next dose of glatiramer, the only drug that had any effect on her Multiple Sclerosis. She walked into the kitchen and prepared her injection, raising her voice so that Sarah could hear her. Even after all these years, Sarah still couldn't watch her mother inject herself.

"That was your father's yeoman. The SecNav called your father personally to tell him that your brother survived the explosion."

"Tim's alive?" Sarah was at the door into the kitchen, not looking down at her mother's hands. "They're sure?"

"Yes." Daily injection done, Barbara dropped the used syringe into the sharps container. "Now, apparently he's part of the team tracking down the people responsible, so that's probably why we haven't heard from him."

The way her mother stumbled over the explanation told Sarah that she wasn't totally convinced either. "Tim always lets us know. Always."

"I know." Barbara leaned heavily against the counter. "I know, but your father is right, we would just be in the way. He ordered you and I to stay here and wait for all of this to be over."

"But Mom..."

"No, he's right. I would just be in the way."

Sarah didn't have an answer. Other than the daily injections, it was quite easy to forget her mother was ill. It had been years since she'd had a serious episode, but the entire family worked hard to limit her stress, the major cause of every relapse she'd ever had. Lost in thought, she almost missed it when her mother started talking again.

"Of course, your father didn't pass along any orders about your grandmother." Barbara smiled at her daughter.

"That's perfect." Sarah returned her mother's smile. "She has more contacts and influence in DC anyways."

-NCIS-

It was tempting, but Harper Dearing set the phone down on the workbench rather than throw it against the wall. He'd spent so much time and money covering his trail, it seemed inconceivable that the Geek on Gibbs' team had found him. He'd been glad to see that Gibbs had survived the blast, a quick death wasn't what he wanted for the man, but he didn't expect to be battling the FBI so quickly.

Still cursing the geek, Dearing finished running the wires across the warehouse, tying the C-4 at each door to one single trigger. He'd planned on using this to kill off Gibbs eventually, after he'd driven the man insane with grief, but taking out the FBI would be almost as good as he found another way to bring Gibbs to him for a final battle.

Trigger and remote in place, Dearing picked up his duffel bag as he smiled at the homeless man he'd found. With an unlimited supply of food and booze, the old man had no intention of wandering away from the building and his build and coloring was close enough to Dearing's to buy him more time. Once they had the DNA sorted out, Dearing would be set up in a new spot with a new plan.

Taking one last look around, Dearing climbed down the ladder and into the storm drain that ran under the building, locking the access door behind him. He'd memorized the layout of the pipes, knowing exactly where to go. It was a twenty minute jog to the chained grate that let the water out into the creek during a rainstorm. No one had any reason to walk the waterway this time of the year so no one had noticed the padlock was new.

Near the entrance was a backpack that Dearing grabbed as he undid the chain and slipped out the grate before sealing it back up. Pulling out a faded denim jacket and a hard hat, he easily transformed into one of the dozens of laborers that worked the warehouses and docks. With all the talk about the earlier bombing, no one questioned one quiet worker going about the job site. Duffel thrown over one shoulder, Dearing picked a building that would give him a good view. By the time several FBI vans parked the required two blocks away from his warehouse, Harper Dearing was settled in to watch the show.


	11. Chapter 11

**a/n - It's still Wednesday here, but I am cutting it close. There's nothing more adorable than a group of four year olds graduating and forgetting that it's walk across the bridge, then get your diploma, then get your plastic lei, then sit back down. Cat herding at its finest.**

**BTW, I uploaded the corrected version of chapter 10. Sorry about that.**

* * *

"Tell me what you've got." Fornell leaned over Patterson's shoulder and stared at the small screen.

Patterson sent the command out to gear up before turning to Fornell. "Heat sensor shows one person in the warehouse. He doesn't know we're onto him. Perimeter search confirms that there's three entrances, so we're going to hit all three at the same time. He'll have no place to go."

"You expecting him to give up without a fight?"

The tactical expert grinned as he strapped on his helmet. "I've seen the type. After all, he can't brag about what he did without an audience."

Fornell looked back across at the Yard. "I hope you're right because Gibbs is going to want to grill him personally." He checked his own body armor before following Patterson across the street to meet up with the assault team. It was time to end this.

-NCIS-

"Hey, Boss."

Gibbs' eyes flew open as his hand was touched. "To – Stan." He immediately corrected himself when he saw the familiar agent. "Thought you were still out recovering."

"I had to come back when I heard what happened." Stan Burley took a moment to study the older man. At first glance he didn't look too bad, but the ashen skin tone, multiple IV's and the collection bag attached to the side of the bed told a different story. "I had to make sure you were going to be okay."

"It'll take more than a bomb to take me out."

Despite the confident answer, there was more than a touch of gratitude in the answering squeeze Stan felt against his hand so he didn't let go. "What can I do?"

"Check... check on my team." Gibbs' voice was rough and he was looking over Stan's shoulder as he talked to him. "Being told they're doing as well as can be expected..." He finally looked at Stan, showing a rare vulnerability. "I need somebody I trust to be honest to tell me about them. The last time I saw Tony he was still unconscious and Tim's been in surgery for hours. The girls are here someplace, too."

"Abby and Ziva?" When Gibbs nodded, Stan stood. "Okay Boss, I'm going to go find them. I'll be back after I've seen them all, so you get some rest because that might take a while." He squeezed Gibbs' hand one last time before he pulled away, adjusting his sling as he walked out the door.

-NCIS-

"All right, let's close him up. We've done all we can do for now. If he survives the next twenty-four hours, we'll go back in and repair the rest of the damage. How's his blood pressure?"

"Low, but fairly stable."

"I guess we take what we can get. Any improvement in his O2 stats?"

"Zero point five increase when the chest tube went in, but nothing since then."

"Damn, I was hoping re-inflating the lung would have more of an impact. All right, we keep him on the vent for now. Hopefully the added support will give his lungs time to heal." The exhausted surgeon stepped back and let his assistant take the lead in closing the surgical site.

Fresh from medical school, this was the first major disaster the younger man had dealt with. "Do you think he's got a chance, Dr. Morgan?"

"He's young and was in fairly good health before this happened. I'd say he's got a chance as long as he doesn't hemorrhage again." When the surgical resident returned his attention to stitching up the incision, Dr. Morgan exchanged glances with his head surgical nurse. They both knew that a blast injury such as this was very grave indeed.

-NCIS-

Melissa Andrews had finished checking her patient's vitals and was getting ready to leave the room when she heard a low moan. Returning to the bedside, she leaned over to give her patient some encouragement as he fought his way back to consciousness. "Agent DiNozzo, can you hear me?" She used her knuckles to rub hard on his sternum, glad to have a response this time as he grunted in pain.

"That's it, Agent DiNozzo, it's time to wake up."

When the green eyes finally opened, they immediately dismissed her and looked around the room, obviously searching for something or someone. "Where... what?"

"It's all right, sir. You're at Bethesda, you were injured in a bombing at NCIS."

Tony struggled to make sense of the scattered memories, then it all came rushing back. "Bombing? The bomb, the bomb went off. Where's Ziva? She was with me." Starting to panic, Tony tried to sit up and a wave of dizziness and nausea hit him. He fell back against the bed and the nurse barely had time to grab an emesis basin before he started to vomit.

When it was over, she washed his face as she soothed him. "Take it easy, you've got a concussion so you don't want to be moving around too much right now. How are you feeling? Any double vision?"

"You mean you're not a set of twins?" The smile was strained and the hand that rubbed his face was shaking. "I've got to go, I've got to find my team."

When he rolled to his side and tried to get up, she easily pushed him back down. "Oh, no, you're not going anywhere right now. This is your second concussion in less than a year and you were unconscious for hours. Now is not the time to play macho."

"Please, I need to know what happened to my team."

It had been utter chaos all day in the hospital and new patients were scattered throughout every wing, some of them still unidentified in the system, but after three tours overseas Melissa understood how close a team could become. "Give me their names and I'll see what I can find out during my next break." She pointed a finger at him. "As long as you stay put and do what you're told. Deal?"

Tony had already figured out that he wasn't going to get far on his own. "Yeah, deal."

-NCIS-

Jimmy knew that their plane would land at Bolling Air Force Base, the closest military airfield to the Yard, but he hadn't figured out how best to make the last leg of the journey. When they landed, however, a helicopter was waiting for them, courtesy of Leon Vance. Ed was impressed, but Jimmy was already focused on the upcoming task and preparing himself to deal with the bodies of people he knew.

Evening was just starting to fall when the helicopter circled around the damaged building, giving them a unique perspective of the damage. Large floodlights had been brought in and were shining through the hole where the front doors had once stood, the almost orange glow of the high pressure Sodium lights giving an eerie glow to the scene.

"Holy hell." Ed stared in shock at the sight.

Jimmy shook his head as he started planning out what to do first. "It's hell, all right, but there's nothing holy about this."

The chopper landed and Palmer was all business, jogging immediately over the the building but detouring when he saw Vance still at the temporary command center. Vance was leaning against a damaged car, staring at the markings on the hood. "Director Vance."

"Palmer." Vance shook his hand and then, much to his surprise, pulled him in for a brief hug. "Thank you for coming back. This isn't exactly the honeymoon you had planned."

"This is my family, I had to come back."

Nodding solemnly, Vance started showing Jimmy what they knew so far about the bodies still inside and who survived.

-NCIS-

Tucked against a large roof vent, Harper Dearing was virtually invisible as he watched the FBI move closer to the building. Right on cue, they found the first layer of explosives. He fingered the remote as he thought about blowing the building right then, but the play was still in its first act. He'd let them think they'd beaten him before he showed them just who was really in charge.

-NCIS-

The hospital was huge and the receptionist was frazzled, but eventually Stan found out that Abby had been taken up to the Pulmonary Department, along with Ziva. Deciding to start there, Stan made his way to the unit. The nurse at the desk was typing on the computer and had a phone tucked against her ear, apparently trying to move several patients to a rehab facility to make space for more incoming patients. It was obviously going to take a while, so Stan gave her an apologetic smile before flashing his badge and speaking. "Abby Sciuto? Ziva David?"

Temporarily on hold, the nurse adjusted her grip on the phone as she looked up. "Miss Sciuto is in room 913. The woman that came in with her was moved, but I don't know where." Her call reconnected, she returned her attention to her patient transfer.

Stan looked around and found the signs giving him the proper direction, finding the room around the corner from the nurse's station. Pushing the door open, he stepped inside. "Abby?"

She was sitting in the wheelchair still, having stubbornly refused to be moved into the bed, wringing her hands together as she stared at them. She didn't respond to his voice, so he moved closer to kneel down in front of her, taking her hands. "Hey, Abby girl."

"Oh, Stan." She almost knocked him over as she grabbed at him. "Oh, Stan, it was awful. It was too awful to be real, but it was... and then Gibbs made me leave to take care of Tony... and Ziva was with us... and now I don't know where Tony is and Ziva didn't tell anyone that she was hurt and..."

Stan stopped her with a press of his finger to her lips. "Breathe, Abby." He watched how carefully she studied his mouth. "Can you hear me?"

"Not really, but it's getting better." She took a shaky breath. "Guess it's a good think I can read lips. "Where's Gibbs, Stan?"

"It's okay, Abby. I saw him." He gave her a minute before continuing. "He's awake and worried about the team, so I promised him I'd check on everybody."

"Tell me."

Stan saw one of the nurses come in, along with a lab tech. "Hey, you were number one on my list. Now, I'll make you the same deal I made Gibbs. You do what they say and I'll be honest with whatever I find. Deal?"

Abby raised her hand, with only the little finger extended. "Pinky promise?"

He smiled and hooked his finger with her. "Yeah, pinky promise."

-NCIS-

Coroner vans from multiple agencies had finally been allowed into the Yard and were now parked to the side of the building. Jimmy looked around, seeing some familiar faces. "Dr. Hampton, it's been a long time."

Jordan Hampton gave him an emotional hug. "How's Ducky? I can't believe he had a heart attack."

"He's hanging in there. Breena is with him and the doctors there are encouraged." She nodded at his words, lips pressed together as she struggled with her emotions.

"That's good to hear."

The deep baritone voice caused Jimmy to turn. "Dr. Gutterman, it's been a long time."

"Under the circumstances, not long enough." The retired ME had floated between several agencies, filling in when needed and still fondly remembered the time he ended up filling in for Ducky at a London convention instead of on the job.

Additional introductions were made before Jimmy introduced Ed to the group. "My father-in-law is a mortician and has offered to help us in an unofficial capacity."

Taking command of the group as the senior member of NCIS on site, Jimmy started to pull on the disposable cover-alls, cap and booties. "There's a large group of bodies in the lobby and up the main stairs. We'll start there and work out. A group of Sea-Bees is here to analyze and stabilize the structure, so we'll progress as they give us the all clear. Okay, let's do this."

"My God." Jordan's whispered prayer echoed through the group as they stepped into what was once the lobby. Jimmy and the rest of the medical crew watched as several FBI scene analysis technicians began taking pictures and documenting the location of each of the bodies. They finished with a group of what appeared to be three bodies closest to the entrance, so Palmer and Hampton started there first, Ed ready to assist when it was time to move the bodies.

Jimmy looked closely at the top body, noting the burned holster still encasing its weapon and the outspread arms over the other two bodies. "This is one of the guards. It looks like he was trying to protect them."

"They never stood a chance, did they?"

At Jordan's question, Jimmy looked around, noting the burn patterns on the wall and remembering everything that Ducky had taught him over the years. "It looks like the fireball from the explosion went right up the stairs."

One of the techs squatted down next to them to fill them in on what had already been determined. "Yeah, the pressure from the explosion went straight through the building and blew out the big skylights. The vacuum just sucked the fire right in behind it."

Jimmy closed his eyes for a moment as he imagined the frantic rush to evacuate and the split second of terror these people must have felt before they were engulfed. Not trusting his voice, he nodded his understanding and resumed his work.

Twenty minutes later they were ready to remove the first bodies. Ed stepped closer with the plastic and spread it out before helping Jimmy lift the top body. Despite all his years in the funeral business, Ed had never handled a body that severely burnt and he shuddered at the texture of the charred flesh even through his gloves. "Do you want me to force his arms closer to his body?"

"No, when they're burned this badly, forcing the limbs can cause them to dis-articulate. The intense heat has already fractured the major bones." Jimmy pointed out the obvious fractures as they tucked the plastic carefully around the body.

"Will you have to use DNA to identify them?"

"Some of them, yeah, or dental records." Jimmy pointed out a partial bridge visible in the open mouth before he pulled the plastic over the security guard's face. "This is George. He was supposed to retire the year I started here, but he said he'd miss the place too much. Every major holiday he and his wife would bring in food for whoever was working that day."

Realizing that he'd met the man stopped Ed cold. He remembered last Christmas and staying all night as he and Jimmy waited for the team while they worked to save a pregnant Marine. "They brought in ham , sweet potatoes, and..."

"Green bean casserole." Jimmy finished with a hint of a smile. "It's a turkey ham so Ziva can eat it, too." He didn't know what else to say, so Jimmy gently touched the wrapped body before turning his attention to the bodies of those George had tried to save. Their burns were probably just as fatal, but the lesser damage to the bodies gave Jimmy more clues as to how they died. "Dr. Hampton, take a look at this."

She had to look closely and wasn't entirely sure Jimmy was right until she pried open the mouth of one of the victims. "Good call, Mr. Palmer."

Ed had no idea what they were talking about. "What? What did you find?"

"They were killed by the explosion, not the fire. At least we can tell the families of these three that they didn't suffer." Jimmy shrugged as he tried to explain. "It's not much, but it's one slight comfort we can give the families."

Ed sat back on his heels as he watched them work. He dealt with families as part of his job, but by the time they came into his world the tough questions had already been answered.

-NCIS-

Harper Dearing watched closely through his binoculars as an FBI bomb tech thought he'd been successful in dismantling the bomb rigged to the door. He didn't have a good view, but he knew there were crews at each of the other doors doing the same exact thing. Watching the man sit back with a satisfied smile at a job well done, Dearing had a smile of his own.

"Predictable, so damned predictable. Two rounds for me." Smiling wider, he hit send on another burn phone and watched for that split second of realization before the evening sky lit up.


	12. Chapter 12

**a/n - Eleven hours with the grandkids today as Mommy, Daddy and Uncle worked overtime. A very long eleven hours because the youngest was up, fed, dry diaper on, and dressed by 6:00 this morning. Baba is tired, but I got this chapter done in between the invisible sword fights (very hard to score, BTW) and reading _Are you my Mother?_ over and over and over... Well, you get the drift. No real cliffhanger this time, I won't torture you over the weekend.**

* * *

"Leon?"

Vance looked up at the sound of his name. "Jackie, sweetheart, what are you doing here?" He opened his arms and she gratefully went to him.

"I know you said that you were all right, but I needed to see for myself." She held on tight, reveling in the feeling of him alive and mostly well in her arms. "The kids are with Susan and I just couldn't stay home by myself."

"It's okay, I understand." He tightened his grip on her, drawing strength from her presence. Over her shoulder the agent that had been guarding the family looked uncomfortable, expecting to be chastised for bringing the Director's wife to the scene. Vance gave him a slight nod, silently telling him he was off the hook. Jackie was formidable when there was danger and Susan Jarvis was the perfect person to take care of the kids.

Jackie eventually pulled back to take a better look at her husband, touching the bandage still wrapped around his upper arm. "Did Dr. Mallard take a look at this?"

"He's not here, Sweetheart."

"Leon, he's not..." She looked over at the shattered building and he pulled her close again.

"No. He was out of town when it happened, but he had a heart attack when he heard."

"Oh, Leon, is he going to be all right?" Jackie knew how much everyone depended on the kindly doctor. "He's not alone, is he?"

"No, Jimmy Palmer flew back straight from his wedding to help out here, but his wife is with Ducky at the hospital down in Florida."

Her lack of living parents had meant that their own wedding had been in front of the Justice of the Peace, but Jackie had heard about the elaborate plans for the Palmer nuptials. "Those poor kids, this isn't how their day should have ended."

"No, it's not, but his new father-in-law came back with him, so at least her family is somewhat understanding."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about."

"Palmer's family?"

Jackie fondly shook her head at her husband. "No, all the families. What's being done to help them cope? Is the Agency helping with travel arrangements? What about hotel rooms near the hospital?"

Vance shook his head. "Honestly, we haven't gotten that far, yet. Everybody that is still mobile has been given a chance to let someone know they're okay and the identity of the deceased have to be confirmed before we start notifying next of kin. The hospital has notified most of the families of the ones that were sent there." He felt bad, but their resources were limited at the moment, the available personnel even more so.

"What do you mean – most – Leon?"

Vance's thoughts flashed onto Gibbs' team. "Honey, some of our single agents list another member of their team as their next of kin. In an emergency, when medical decisions have to be made, it's easier than tracking down family on the other side of the country."

"Or world." Jackie finished for him, thinking of the young Israeli that had become a naturalized citizen.

"Exactly. I wish we could make sure each family was taken care of, and eventually we will, but right now we've..." Anything else he might have said was interrupted by the sound of another explosion. Instinctively Leon pulled Jackie down to the ground and covered her as he looked around. Panicked screams could be heard, but quickly settled as the realization that the new event wasn't right in the Yard.

Vance spotted the billowing smoke and knew what it was. "Damn it." Staggering back to his feet, he was already barking orders, sending the remaining emergency workers to the nearby warehouse.

"Leon, what's happening?" Jackie stayed put against the car, but raised up enough to look at him.

"We had a lead on Dearing and it looks like he took the FBI with him." While Jackie stared in shock, Vance was on his phone, listening to it ring. "Come on, answer."

-NCIS-

Tony shifted uncomfortably on his bed as he stared at the closed door of his hospital room. He knew that the hospital had been nearly overwhelmed by the number of injured, but not knowing about any of his friends was killing him. If he survived, then he was pretty sure that Ziva probably had, but where was she? Was she in her own hospital room staring at a closed door, or had she returned to the Yard to help with the investigation? Part of him hoped that Dearing had already been taken out, a bullet hole between his eyes, while part of him couldn't help but think that it was his team's right to have that satisfaction – for Gibbs and those that had died at the hands of the madman.

The thought of Gibbs tore at him. The last he'd seen of the older man, he'd been on his way to find and disarm the bomb. The fact that it had detonated, Tony refused to even think about that. The only bright spot was his absolute conviction that McGee had made it safely out of the building. After all, he'd been the one to sound the evacuation alarm, so he should have been one of the first ones out the door.

-NCIS-

Stan Burley took a deep breath as he prepared to enter DiNozzo's room. He knew the other man had awakened earlier and was asking questions about the rest of his team. DiNozzo wouldn't stop until he had his questions answered. He wouldn't either, if their places had been reversed, and Stan almost regretted convincing Gibbs' doctor to let Stan fill in as medical proxy for the team. One more deep breath and Stan pushed the door open.

"Hey, DiNozzo, how ya' doing?"

"Stan." Tony rubbed at his face. "Man, am I glad to see somebody. Tell me what's going on."

"I haven't been to the Yard." He pointed out his own sling. "With just one wing, I'd be more of a hindrance than a help there, so Vance suggested that I come down here." He didn't mention that he was tasked with reporting back on the deaths here at the hospital.

"Gibbs..." Tony's voice broke as he struggled to tell Stan where their mentor had been when the bomb exploded.

"I saw him." Stan rushed to explain. "He's going to be okay, at least if he follows doctor's orders, he will be."

"He's,,, he's alive?"

"Yeah. Sorry, I guess nobody told you."

"Nobody's told me anything. You've seen him? Tell me." Tony tried to sit up, but only managed to roll onto his side to better see Stan.

Knowing this was going to take a while, Stan sat in one of the chairs. "He was making Abby leave the lab when the bomb went off. Managed to get her under one of those heavy tables, which saved the two of them, but they both breathed in a lot of nasty stuff in the lab. I don't know all the details, but he got Abby out of the building, got you and Ziva out of the elevator and found McGee and got him help before he finally accepted help for himself."

"McGee? No, he had plenty of time to get clear." Tony struggled to remember past the pounding in his head. "He was suppose to sound the alarm and then go."

"Apparently he found a lead on Dearing at the last second and stayed to save it. I don't know if that makes him a fool or a hero, but according to Vance, when Gibbs found him he was still clutching the flash-drive in his hand. There's an FBI team going after Dearing right now."

Tony bunched up the blankets in his fist as his frustration grew. "McGee's no fool. How bad..." He swallowed hard and tried again. "How bad is he hurt?"

Stan almost wished DiNozzo hadn't asked. "I won't lie to you, man, it's bad. It's real bad. They've already removed his spleen and a chunk of his liver to try and stop the bleeding. The doc expects to have to go back in a remove part of his intestine, too. Something about how the blast wave affects parts of the body that have air in them. His lungs are really fried right now, so they've got a respirator breathing for him. He's still alive, but honestly I don't know if that's a good thing or not."

"Damn it."

Stan watched Tony's throat work as he struggled to control his emotions. To give him time, Stan just kept talking. "Anyways, I saw Abby and talked to her for a few minutes. She was deaf at first, but her hearing is starting to come back. Don't know if she'll get it all back, but probably enough to communicate. She's getting treated for the chemicals she breathed, same as Gibbs."

Tony was grateful for that bit of good news, but he found himself feeling guilt for not pulling the senior agent card and ordering McGee out of the building. "What about Ziva?"

Seriously considering lying and claiming that he didn't know, Stan hesitated, but Tony caught the expression on his face. "Tell me."

"She apparently seemed okay at first, kept telling everyone that she was fine."

"Obviously she wasn't or we wouldn't be having this conversation."

"It was a slow bleed in her brain. They caught it right before she had a seizure."

"Oh, God."

"At least she was here at the hospital when it happened. They, umm, they drilled a hole in her skull to monitor the pressure. So far medication is keeping it under control and the bleeding has stopped so they may not have to operate."

"Damn it." Tony pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes until he saw stars, trying to stay in control. "Is there any good news?"

"Yeah. You're alive, your team is alive. From what I hear that's a miracle in itself." Stan shuffled his feet, hating to leave after dumping so much on the hurting man. "Listen, the Boss is waiting for a report. He doesn't know what happened to Ziva or that you're awake."

"Does he know how bad McGee is?"

Stan remembered the look on the older man's face. "Yeah, he knows."

-NCIS-

Wiping blood off his face, Fornell dragged himself upright and looked at the inferno in front of him. Multiple explosions had started a ring of fire around the building and it was quickly spreading through the old wooden structure.

"That son of... it was a trap." Fornell dug for his phone, but the screen was cracked, rendering the touchscreen useless.

Beside him, Sacks rolled onto his back, clutching his shoulder. "Well, hell, I didn't peg him as the suicide bomber type."

"Yeah, neither did I." Fornell looked around and started checking for survivors. Patterson was alive, but his arm was badly burned. His second in command was unconscious, as were several others. Closer to the building there was no doubt about the fatalities among the bomb techs, so Fornell didn't push to get near the flames that had already climbed to the roof. Instead, he and the agents that were still on their feet concentrated on dragging the rest of the survivors to safety. Tobias thought about what had happened because there was something about this that wasn't adding up. Suicide bombers usually blew themselves up, they didn't trap themselves and slowly burn to death. He searched for a possible escape route for their suspect, but all he could see were flames.

Minutes later, the first of the firetrucks arrived and Fornell found himself being checked over. "You okay, sir?"

Dropping down to sit on the curb, Fornell waved away the assistance. "I'll keep, check on the others." When the fireman moved away, Tobias let his head drop down into his hands. "Damn, I'm getting too old for this crap."


	13. Chapter 13

Nodding to the agent as he posted himself outside her front door, Jackie Vance collapsed into the nearest chair. Every time she thought she understood what her husband faced, she'd get a glimpse that reminded her of how much he protected his family from the horrors out there.

She touched her cheek, still feeling the soft brush of his lips before he sent her home.

_"Jackie, honey, are you all right?" He pulled her close, checking for damage as she brushed the dirt off her clothes._

_The frantic phone call that he'd tried to make told her he knew what was happening. "I'm fine, Leon, but what's going on? What was that?"_

_He glanced back over at the apparently spreading fire. "That's where our bomber was hiding so he could watch the aftermath. The FBI was moving in to take him into custody."_

_"Oh, no." Jackie didn't need it to be spelled out for her. More good people had just died at the hands of the madman. "You have to go, don't you?"_

_"I'm sorry." He pulled her close and kissed her cheek before nuzzling her neck as if memorizing that moment. "Have I told you how much I love you? You and the kids are my lifeline."_

_"It's going to be all right, Leon." She pulled back far enough to kiss him before pulling him down to rest his forehead against hers. "You just promise me that you're going to do everything you can to stay alive, okay?" _

_"I promise, baby."_

_Jackie gave him her bravest smile and straightened up. "All right then, you go do what you need to do to catch that bastard and take care of your people. I'll take care of the families."_

Smiling at the memory of the love she saw on his face at her declaration, Jackie climbed to her feet and went into the kitchen. Pam and several of the uninjured members of HR were on their way to help her coordinate with the incoming families, so they were going to need lots of coffee.

-NCIS-

Sarah hated to drive but she could tell her mother was exhausted, so she slid behind the wheel when it was time to drive to the airport. It was a little over an hour's drive from the family home at the Naval Submarine Base, New London to the nearest major airport outside of Hartford, but Sarah pretended she was Ziva and made the trip in a little under fifty minutes.

They didn't need to hurry, as the reader board for incoming flights showed Penny's flight was delayed over two hours. Undeterred, Barbara went to the counter for more information while Sarah staked out a spot in a coffee shop where they could see the reader board.

Not remembering all the details about the connecting flight, Barbara dug out the information as she waited for her turn. Eventually the elderly couple in front of her had their assigned seats changed and it was Barbara's turn. "Hi, can you tell me what the problem is with Flight 3927? It's been delayed two hours, but it's only a two hour flight. Has it even left Chicago?"

"Well, let's take a look and find out." The artificially happy woman in the blue uniform typed a command into her computer. "There was a mechanical issue and they've brought in another aircraft. They'll take off after all the luggage is transferred."

Barbara's hand was shaking as she rubbed her forehead. "Okay, here's the deal. My son was caught in the bombing down in Washington earlier today and we're still waiting to hear from him. I'm too ill to make the trip, but I know my mother-in-law will want to go down there so we can get some answers. She's been on a plane for so long, that I don't even know if she's heard about what happened."

Fingers flew across the keyboard again. "If we can get her pulled off the plane, I can get her onto a flight to... well, someplace closer. Flights into DC are restricted because of the attack, so let me see what else I can find. First, let's see if we can get her pulled off the flight."

While the reservation clerk continued to work and the line continued to grow behind her, Barbara tried to call Penny. As she expected, the phone went to voice mail. She shook her head at the young woman, who immediately called her counterpart at the other airport. It took a minute, but her call was transferred to the gate desk and a message was passed on to have Penny immediately call her daughter-in-law. While she waited, Barbara stepped off to the side and the clerk checked in the next customer as she continued to search for a possible flight.

It only took a few minutes before Barbara's phone sounded the distinctive sound that told her the message had gotten through. "Penny, thank goodness."

_~Barb, sweetie, what's going on?~_

Since Penny sounded concerned but not scared, Barbara was already sure of the answer before she asked. "Have you seen the news?"

_~No, what's happened?~_

"A terrorist set off a bomb at NCIS Headquarters."

_~No! Is... is Timothy...~_

"He's alive, but we don't know anything else. Ben's Yeoman didn't tell us any more than that, but..."

_~His Yeoman? Ben didn't talk to you himself?~_

"No, he was too busy." Barbara knew she wasn't hiding her frustration, but she was too tired to care.

_~My grandson was caught in a bombing and my son is too busy to make sure he's all right?~_

Even as stressed and worried as she was, Barbara had to smile at Penny's reaction. "He hasn't left the command center at the repair yard since the fire started. I wouldn't worry so much, but Tim always sends a message that he's all right when something bad happens and this time..."

_~You haven't heard from him.~_

Barbara's voice broke as she admitted her fears. "Not a word, Penny, and that's not like him."

_~I need to go straight to DC, then. Are you already at the airport?~_

"Yes, and a very nice young lady is trying to find you a flight." Barbara handed her phone over to the woman that was helping her. Just twenty minutes later, with the help of workers at several airports, Penny and her luggage were preparing to board a flight to Harrisburg where a rental car would be waiting for her. It wasn't the closest airport and it certainly wasn't the largest, but due to the heavy security, it was the only available flight that night.

-NCIS-

Fornell looked up as the black SUV pulled up next to the fire trucks. The man in the back seat didn't wait for anyone to open his door, instead he jumped out as soon as the large vehicle stopped moving.

Vance didn't say anything at first, just looked Fornell over, noting the bandage on his head. "What went wrong?"

"I don't know."

Before Fornell could say anything else, Sacks interrupted from where he was sitting on a stretcher as his wounds were assessed. "Your geek tipped his hand, Dearing knew we were coming."

"No." Fornell's words came slow as he struggled to put the pieces together. "No, I don't think so. Take a look at this." Wincing, he climbed to his feet and started walking.

Curious, Vance followed him to one of the surveillance vans the FBI had been using, steadying him as he stepped up onto the back bumper, before following him inside. He watched as Fornell brought up the feed the heat sensor cameras had recorded earlier.

"Watch this."

Vance leaned closer as watched as the outline of what appeared to be a man sitting at the table, calmly eating. It wasn't until the explosion that the figure jumped up and they watched him run in circles until the heat of the spreading fire turned the screen yellow, then red.

"He's a meticulous planner, why didn't he have an escape route, or do you think he wanted to die?" Vance looked back at the frozen last image of the man in the warehouse. "Hell of a way to go."

Fornell tapped the screen before turning back to look at the burned out building. "It doesn't make sense, none of it makes sense. Our bomb techs disarmed those bombs, but they still blew up."

"Trip wire?"

"Nope." Fornell shook his head. "Nobody had moved."

Vance thought about what had been pieced together from the bomb fragments outside his own agency. "Remote detonation?"

"How?" Fornell waved at the screen. Unless the remote was in his sandwich, I don't see how."

"A secondary arming system? A timer that was triggered when your people disarmed it?"

It seemed pretty elaborate, but Dearing was known for his elaborate and convoluted thinking, so Fornell wasn't sure. "It's possible, but why not try to escape? He burned to death in there. I never pegged him as suicidal, let alone to go that route."

"There you are." One of the paramedics poked his head into the van. "You need to get that head wound stitched up, sir." He paused, taking in the second man in the surveillance van. "Director Vance, didn't I send you to the hospital hours ago?"

Vance shrugged. "Been kinda busy. I'll get it looked at when I go check on my people."

"Uh uh." Looking unconvinced, the medic shook his head as he turned and left.

"I'll bring Gibbs up to date on this if he's up to it when I get there." Vance stepped to the door of the surveillance van. "Any idea when we can get in the building?"

"Fire Chief said morning at the earliest. I've got a couple of teams coming in to maintain the perimeter." Fornell joined him, looking at the scene. "Something tells me this isn't over, Leon."

"Yeah, I know."

-NCIS-

"Agent Gibbs?"

It took Gibbs a second to place the familiar face. "Dr. Pitt, it's been a long time."

"Probably not long enough, right?" Brad walked in the rest of the way, looking at the latest print-outs from the lab. "I'm going to be moving you upstairs to my domain. We'll take good care of you."

"I'm more worried about making sure my team's being taken care of."

"Hey, Boss, I'm back." Stan poked his head in, surprised to see that Gibbs wasn't alone. "Sorry, I'll come back."

"No, Stan, tell me. What did you find?"

"Well, I do have some good news. DiNozzo's awake."

"Thank God." Gibbs let his head fall back against the pillow. "You talk to him?"

"Yeah, he was convinced that you were dead." Stan leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "Don't think he's a hundred percent convinced that I wasn't lying to him."

"He's stubborn like that.

"Wonder where he got that from?"

Gibbs snorted at the comment before he turned to Dr. Pitt. "I want to see my people."

"Of course you do." Pitt sighed, knowing this was going to be hard. "If your numbers continue to improve, we can probably get you in a wheelchair in a day or two."

"A day or two? No, I need to see them, I need to see my team."

"They need to see him, too, doc. Is there any way to work this?" Stan stepped closer, supporting his former boss.

Brad pinched the bridge of his nose. "Let me see what I can do. Stay put." He pointed at Gibbs before walking out the door.

Gibbs immediately dismissed him to turn his attention to Stan. "Tell me."

"He's got a pretty good concussion, dizzy as hell, nausea, double vision, the whole package. I think the idea of sitting the rest of this out is tearing him apart."

Stan wasn't telling him about DiNozzo's feelings that Gibbs didn't already know. "What about the others?"

"Abby's doing okay. Pretty freaked about being alone, but her hearing is starting to come back."

Something Stan said set off an alarm in Gibbs' head. "Wait, why is she alone? Where's Ziva?"

"Being treated for her own injuries, Gibbs. She had a slow bleed in her brain."

"Damn it." Gibbs closed his eyes. "How bad?"

"They're monitoring the pressure and she stabilizing. She had a seizure before they got everything under control, though.

Gibbs wanted to hit something, but forced his emotions back under control. "And McGee?"

Stan really had hoped to have more news, or at least better. "He's back in surgery. They were hoping to wait until he was stronger, but..."

"But what? What happened?"

"More internal bleeding. They're doing everything they can, Boss. He's in good hands."

"Not good enough. We need Ducky here to sort all this out. Have you talked to him, is he on his way back?"

Stan froze, not knowing what to say, as he wished he hadn't asked Director Vance that same question.


	14. Chapter 14

**a/n - Everybody still with me? You guys got quiet on me. It was either break it here or it was going to be a huge chapter, and I do mean huge. Long week of potty training here, but Baba survived. Heard from Army boy finally. He's been sitting at Ft. Jackson for fifteen days now, but his flight's finally been confirmed and he flies out next Monday. That will be a total of twenty days of sitting in a room, waiting. No television, no internet, no phone, no books and no musical instrument for nine hours every day. I've been informed that Ft. Jackson is the armpit of the Army, after hearing about this I have to agree.**

* * *

Stan had never been so grateful as when his phone rang at that moment. Looking down at the display and seeing the name 'Jackie Vance', he didn't dare answer the phone in front of Gibbs in case the news wasn't good. He held up the still buzzing phone as he started to back up. "Sorry, Boss, I gotta take this. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Without waiting for a response, he darted out into the hallway before taking the call. "Mrs. Vance, what can I do for you?"

Gibbs leaned back in his bed, wondering what it was about the call that made Stan so nervous.

-NCIS-

Jackie opened her door to Pamela and several more ladies she only knew by sight. Between the three women, they had two surviving agency laptops. Adding in the family computer the kids shared and Jackie's own laptop, that made for enough. Pamela had worked at the Vance home before, when the Director was recovering from his last encounter with a bomb, so she already her her own log-in on the family network. Using that, she immediately started setting up an additional network between the four computers and the off-site servers where the agency's personnel records were backed up.

While that was being done, Jackie decided to get an update from the hospital. She called the number Leon had given her, listening to it ring. She'd almost given up when it was finally answered.

_~Mrs. Vance, what can I do for you?~_

He sounded out of breath and distracted. "Agent Burley, I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time. I was hoping to get an update of the conditions of our injured before I started helping the families make travel arrangements."

_~Oh, no, actually you saved me. Gibbs was asking when Dr. Mallard would be arriving and I didn't know exactly what to tell him.~_

Jackie knew enough about Jethro Gibbs to know he would quickly become suspicious if his question wasn't answered. "I know that he's alive, but not much more than that. Breena Palmer is my next call to make."

_~I'd appreciate an update if you don't mind, ma'am. Having his chicks scattered, alone and hurt isn't helping Gibbs.~_

"Of course. Now, tell me, how bad is it?" Jackie listened, her worry increasing as she heard about Ziva's complications and McGee's second emergency surgery. "You've got your hands full, Agent Burley."

_~Yeah, but my biggest worry is Gibbs. He's so darn stubborn, but if he doesn't let the doctors take care of him now, he'll end up in a really bad way. I think his belief that Ducky is on his way here to watch out for his team is the only reason Gibbs is letting them treat him.~_

"You're going to have to act as their advocates, Agent Burley. There's got to be a way to let Jethro visit with his team for a few minutes and then get at least some of them recovering in the same room."

_~I already talked to one of the nurses about that. McGee will be in the ICU for a while, but the rest are being moved to rooms. The problem is that Gibbs and Tony need to be in different areas in the hospital, same with Ziva and Abby and they won't put men and women in the same room.~_

Jackie knew why the rules were important, but she also knew when they needed to be broken. "It's not like they're strangers. They're family, somebody at the hospital must understand that."

_~There's one doctor that's known the team the longest. I'm going to try and track him down and see if he can do something.~_

The arrival of the SecNav at her door made Jackie smile. "Well, if you can't make them see reason, Secretary Jarvis will take care of it. I'll call you back after I get an update on Dr. Mallard's condition."

Clayton raised an eyebrow as she closed her phone. "Just what will I be doing?" He handed over a deli bag to one of the women who started setting out the soup and sandwiches.

"Gibbs' team is scattered through the hospital, but they need to see each other. Since the agency requires agents of different sex to share a room when they're overseas, they should be allowed to be together in the hospital." Jackie stopped and really looked at the man. "Aren't you supposed to be at the White House?"

Jarvis waved away the concern. "This was a little more important. "What's the latest from the hospital?"

"Agent DiNozzo is awake and Miss Sciuto is doing well. Agent David's head injury is worse than they thought and Agent McGee's back in surgery. Agent Gibbs could go either way, depending on if he does what he's told."

"And we know how good he is at that."

"His kids are hurt, Clayton. He's reacting the same way Leon would under the circumstances."

It had been a difficult lesson, but over the last year, Jarvis had come to understand a few facts about the agency's top team. "I know, Jackie. Now, I understand that you're working to help the families, so I wanted you to know that I've authorized NCIS families to have top priority on military shuttle flights and the entire Navy Lodge is available for housing while they're here."

Jackie had been prepared to use her own credit card if necessary, so the support was welcome news. "Thank you, Clayton, that will help a lot."

An earlier conversation was still bothering Jarvis. "When you call Agent McGee's family, don't bother with his father. The man couldn't put duty aside long enough to ask about his son's condition, even after I did everything short of ordering him to ask."

The happily married woman couldn't understand that kind of reaction. She knew that Leon struggled with finding the balance at times, but he never ignored his own children's welfare. "Leon mentioned once that Agent McGee is close to his sister, I'll call her instead of the parents."

"That's probably for the best. All right, I'm headed back to my office for a call from the FBI, so let me know if anything else happens."

"How bad was the second bombing?"

Jarvis gave her a troubled look. "I don't know."

-NCIS-

With cash but no totally safe fake ID, Harper Dearing was forced to check into a sleazy motel that rented rooms by the hour, but it was the one place he knew of that wouldn't ask questions. Staring in disgust at the yellowed sheets he felt his anger growing towards the man that had come so close to finding him.

-NCIS-

Breena had just finished speaking to the doctor when Ducky's phone vibrated in her pocket. Knowing it was someone in Washington wanting an update, she quickly answered. "Hello, this is Breena."

_~It's Jackie Vance, Breena. How are you doing?~_

The question caught her off-guard and Breena found herself suddenly tearing up. "Not exactly the wedding day we had planned."

_~You're not alone there, are you?~_

"No, my mother and the rest of the family have been taking shifts, but..."

_~They don't understand why you're there without your husband on your wedding day.~_

Breena leaned against the wall, clutching the phone, at the relief of having someone understand. "My aunt just spent the last hour trying to convince me to have our marriage annulled. They just don't get it."

_~We spouses are in a difficult position sometimes. The demands are just like in the military, but we're still civilians so others don't understand that our husbands can't just walk away when it gets hard or if the timing is inconvenient. If it helps, I saw Jimmy earlier. He's doing a marvelous job filling in for Dr. Mallard and your father is obviously very proud of him.~_

"Yes." Breena couldn't stop the sob that bubbled out. "It does, it helps a lot. So does knowing that Dr. Mallard is improving."

_~That's wonderful, what have the doctors told you?~_

Moving onto facts helped Breena calm down. "The drugs they gave him were able to break apart the clot, so it looks like he won't need heart surgery. They're keeping him sedated to minimize the stress, but he's been aware enough to know that our friends are still alive."

Realizing that it had been several hours since the last report, she started to panic. "They still are, aren't they?" Jackie seemed quick to reassure her.

_~Yes, they're all sill alive, in fact Tony DiNozzo is awake and Gibbs is fighting with the doctors.~_

Breena couldn't help but laugh after all the stories she'd head about Gibbs from Jimmy. "That's really good, what about the rest? Abby? Tim and Ziva?"

_~Abby is stable and resting comfortably. She's had some hearing loss and she inhaled some toxic fumes from the lab, but the doctors are confident that she should recover from both. Ziva had a serious head injury, but she's stable now.~_

"And Tim?" Breena held her breath, suspecting that the other woman had saved the worst for last.

_~He's alive, but I won't lie to you, it's bad. Right now he's undergoing his second emergency operation to try and stop all the internal bleeding.~_

Suddenly Breena felt guilty for feeling overwhelmed. "I wish I could do more."

_~You're helping Ducky, and that's very important. I can't imagine how everyone here would react if we lost him right now. Just take care of him and yourself, alright? And call me if there's any change or if you need anything at all. I'm coordinating with all the families and you're part of that.~_

"Thank you, ma'am, that means a lot." Feeling more peaceful and centered, Breena closed the phone and took a deep breath before returning to the waiting room and the next set of relatives that didn't understand.

-NCIS-

Looking around, Stan honed in on the least frazzled looking nurse. "Hi, where would I find Dr. Pitt?

Instead of answering, she smiled and pointed behind him before returning to her patient charts. Stan turned and saw a familiar man in scrubs that was walking up to him after having heard his name.

"We weren't formally introduced before, I'm Dr. Pitt. Let me guess, you're with NCIS?"

Stan let his eyes flicker around the still crowded emergency department. "Isn't everybody today?"

"You got me there. What can I do for you?"

"Gibbs, DiNozzo, Sciuto, David and McGee – and before you ask, Gibbs has transferred his medical proxy for the rest of them to me, and has authorized me to speak on his behalf. You can check the files."

Dr. Pitt just nodded, already familiar with the strange family ties. "I can't tell you about all of them, but Abby is my patient and she's doing well. Gibbs is being transferred to my care as well, so I'll be able to give you a better idea after I get him upstairs and do a full work up. I haven't seen the two guys yet, but I heard that DiNozzo's doing okay, and Agent David was transferred to neurology when we realized the extent of her head injury."

"Yeah, okay, but here's the thing." Stan hesitated for a second, then decided to jump right in. "If you don't want Gibbs to sign himself out AMA and drag himself around all four corners of the hospital to check on his team, you need to find another way for him see them for himself. Because that's the only way you're going to convince him that they're doing reasonably okay. In fact, that pretty much goes for everyone on the team that's currently conscious. You need to keep them together as much as possible."

"Well, Gibbs and Abby will be in the same unit, but they'll probably both be confined to a bed for the next twenty four hours. Maybe we can put them in rooms opposite of each other."

"Not good enough."

Brad wasn't all that surprised at the rejection, he'd felt his conversation with Gibbs had been headed in that direction before he'd been called away. "All right, let me do some checking and see what I can do."

That had gone much easier than Stan had been expecting, which told him how much experience Dr. Pitt had had with the team. He wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth, though, and just gratefully nodded at the other man before he left. Once alone, he didn't have time to think about the conversation as his phone rang. Seeing Jackie Vance's name he quickly answered.


	15. Chapter 15

**a/n - It's still Friday where I am. Nice, long chapter for you guys today, so I hope you like it. Potty training is going great and Army boy is counting the days until his flight. Remember to use that handy-dandy blue button at the end of the chapter and I'll see you guys on Monday.**

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"Gibbs."

"Leon." As one of the nurses finished bandaging the burn on his leg, Gibbs opened his eyes to see the Director standing over him. He looked rough, with fresh dirt on his already torn and bloodied suit. "What's happening, did the FBI get Dearing?"

"Don't know yet, but he got them." The nurse left and Vance gratefully took the stool she'd been using. "McGee's research pointed to a warehouse not far from the Yard, in fact, close enough to give him a good view."

Gibbs wanted to be the one to put Dearing into handcuffs – or a body bag – so bad he could taste it. "Are you saying that they missed him?"

"He had the whole place wired. Their bomb techs disarmed the bombs, but they blew anyways. Took out half the assault team." Vance gave a deep sigh before telling the rest. "There was somebody in the warehouse, but it'll probably be morning before the place is cool enough to retrieve the body. Who knows if there will be enough of it left to ever identify for sure."

"You don't think it's Dearing?" Gibbs watched Vance's reaction carefully.

"Fornell's not convinced and he's got a point. Whoever was in the warehouse was caught on a thermal camera. The reactions weren't right. He panicked when the bombs blew, and the place caught on fire. I don't see that with Dearing."

"If anybody can ID the body it'll be Ducky." Gibbs didn't look up in time to see the flash of guilt on Vance's face. "When is he arriving?"

"He's still in Florida. It's probably safer if he stays there for now." His words were true, but not for the reason he was hinting, but Vance hoped that Gibbs wouldn't push it for now.

-NCIS-

Several miles away from Bethesda, a civilian hospital was just as busy, but luckily with a smaller number of patients. Tobias Fornell sat on a cot, surrounded by some of the less injured being treated in the Emergency Department. He bit back a curse as a needle filled with Novocaine was jabbed into his forehead, interrupting his call with the Assistant Director. "No sir, I wasn't swearing at you. Yes, sir, no, sir... No, I don't have a tally of the dead yet, sir."

He glared at the nurse as she brought the needle back down. "As soon as they stop jabbing me and let me out of this bed, I will do that, sir. No, sir, I'm not convinced that Dearing is dead. Yes, sir... Yes, sir... No, sir, I don't know what you should tell the media. Perhaps something along the line of a number of good men and women died today at the hands of a terrorist attacking law enforcement. Yes, sir, I suppose that's why I'm not in the big office."

When the call ended, Fornell was tempted to throw the phone against the wall. Off to his left, Sacks shook his head. "Let me guess, Dearing is too rich and well connected to be considered a terrorist?"

Fornell looked over at the man in the next bed. Sacks' dislocated shoulder had been reduced and his arm was tightly secured against his body while a doctor carefully stitched the gash on his shin. "Apparently being part of the one percent gives you immunity, who knew?"

The busy resident that was picking up extra shifts to help pay for his student loans just snorted as he finished the last stitch on Ron Sacks' leg.

-NCIS-

Jackie started her calls with a man she'd met before.

_~Hello?~_

"Mr. Gibbs, this is Jackie Vance."

-NCIS-

Before Gibbs could latch onto why both men had avoided talking about Ducky, Stan returned to the room with Dr. Pitt in tow. Brad waggled a finger at the Director. "One of the paramedics spilled the beans, there's a bounty on your head."

Before Vance could argue, a stern looking nurse arrived with a wheelchair and glared at him. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

Vance shot a desperate glance at Gibbs who just chuckled and shook his head. "Don't look at me, I apparently have a reputation so they stole my clothes."

Giving in and feeling exhausted, Vance lowered himself into the wheelchair. He'd barely gotten his feet on the footrests before she had the chair moving.

Brad Pitt closed the door as soon as they left. "Since you're both going to be in my department, I've authorized for you and Abby to share a room."

"Thank God." It was one small relief in a very difficult day, but Brad wasn't finished.

"I also pulled some strings, well, a lot of strings, and convinced the Neurology Department that it would be in their best interest to room Tony and Ziva together." He held his hand up before Gibbs could say anything. "McGee's going to be in the ICU for a while, there's nothing I can do about that. I can, however, manage to conveniently cross our path with DiNozzo's and David's as we're moving you upstairs. Is that good enough?"

"Let me see McGee."

"Gibbs..."

He turned and looked at Stan. "Is his family here yet?"

Burley had heard about more than just Ducky during his last phone call with Jackie Vance. "I don't think they're coming, Boss. Apparently, when the SecNav informed his father, the good Admiral was too busy with his duties to even bother asking how badly injured his son was."

"Damn it." Gibbs turned back to the doctor, the stubborn set of his jaw apparent. "I need to see him, even if it's just for a minute. I need to let him know he's not alone."

Dr. Pitt recognized the beginning of a losing battle, but he wasn't quite ready to admit defeat. "He's sedated, so he won't even know you're there."

"Yeah, he will."

Exhaling sharply, Brad admitted defeat. "All right, let me see what I can do."

After Pitt left the room, Gibbs turned his attention back to Stan, convinced he was hiding something.

-NCIS-

Jackson couldn't help the jump when his phone finally rang after hours of staring at it. Exchanging a worried look with Sheriff Ed Gantry, who was his current visitor.

"Hello?"

_~Mr. Gibbs, this is Jackie Vance.~_

Leaning heavily on the countertop, Jackson waited for the news. "My boy, is he..."

_~Alive.~_

It took a minute for him to hear the rest of her words past the roaring in his ears.

_~...Keeping him in the hospital for a few days, but he should be fine. He didn't want you to worry, but...~_

Jackson sagged in relief. "Pretty darn hard not to worry after I saw the pictures on the television. What about the team, are they all right?"

_~I'm afraid all of the team were injured. Agent DiNozzo and Miss Sciuto are stable and should recover in time. Agent David's injuries were more severe, but they're very hopeful.~_

Jack knew how hard it would be on Leroy if any of his kids didn't make it. "What about Tim?"

_~They tell us it's too soon to know, but he's survived two rounds of surgery.~_

"Is Ducky helping to take care of them?" The slow response made Jack worry. "Ducky is all right, isn't he?" A moment later, he heard Mrs. Vance sigh.

_~He was away from DC when it happened, but when he heard the news... I'm afraid Ducky had a heart attack. It looks like he's going to pull through, but it won't be quick.~_

Jackson dropped his head as he rubbed his eyes. During the months he'd been in DC when the Reynosa cartel was after anyone associated with Gibbs, he and Ducky had become quite close. "I know Leroy would say it's not necessary, but I'm coming to DC. Those are my friends, those are my..." Jack started to choke up. "Those are my grandkids and I'm gonna help my boy make sure they're taken care of."

_~That's good to hear. I'm helping the families with their travel arrangements, so how soon can you leave?~_

His travel case was already packed and at his feet, so Jack looked at Ed, who quietly nodded. "I'm already packed and have a ride to the airport waiting with me." He could hear a bit of amusement in Jackie's voice as she tapped on a computer.

_~Okay, then, commercial flights into DC are restricted at the moment because of the attacks. The Secretary of the Navy has authorized military transport. I see that there's only one Navy base in Pennsylvania, it's in Mechanicsburg.~_

"Yep, a supply base. I know where it is, right outside of Harrisburg. I believe they use the airport in Harrisburg, in fact. You want me to head there?"

~If you could, that would be wonderful. Take my number down and give me a number where I can reach you while you're driving and by the time you get there, we should have your final travel arrangements done. Would you like me to set a room aside for you at the Navy lodge?~

"Nah, Leroy's got a comfy sofa at his place, I'll be fine there." After giving her Ed's cell phone number, he quickly locked up the store and they were on their way.

-NCIS-

Now that they were alone, Gibbs stared at Stan, watching him shift uncomfortably. Tired of the beating around the bush, Gibbs jumped in. "Dearing got to him, didn't he? Ducky's dead."

"What? No." Realizing he had no choice in the matter now, Stan leaned close and rested his hand on Gibbs' arm. "Ducky's still in Florida, and Dearing didn't get to him, but when he heard about the explosion and that there were casualties, Ducky had a heart attack."

"No, damn it, no."

Stan started speaking over him as he pressed down on Gibbs' arm to keep him in the bed. "He's alive and he's doing okay. Jackie Vance has been talking to someone named Breena, who is at the hospital with him. They were able to break up the clot without performing any kind of surgery and everything's looking good. They're just... they're keeping him sedated to give his heart time to heal without the stress of worrying about what's happening here."

Gibbs raised his free hand up to rub at his face. "Vance."

"Was trying to protect you. You can't help Ducky right now, not until you've recovered from your own injuries."

Seriously thinking about just yanking them free, Gibbs stared at the IV lines going into his arm. "I hate this."

"I know you do, Boss." Trying to give him some encouragement, Stan slid his arm up to Gibbs' shoulder. "In a few days, you'll be able to take care of them, but for now you need to let us do it."

It had taken a few minute, but something Stan had told him caught Gibbs' attention. "Jackie talked to Breena? Where in the hell is Palmer?"

Luckily, Stan remembered something that Vance had said earlier. "He's here in DC, Boss. As soon as Ducky was stable, he flew back to help. Vance said that he's doing a great job filling in for Ducky."

"Good, that's good." Falling silent, Gibbs stared at the door, waiting for more news.

-NCIS-

As soon as she had the cell number for Jackson Gibbs' ride, Jackie went to the next name on her list while in the background she heard Pam try to calm Ned Dorneget's mother and give her directions to the Marine Corps base at Yuma.

The phone rang several times, a tune that Lily loved, before it was answered. The voice sounded older than she was expecting. "Sarah?"

_~No, Sarah is driving. This is her mother, Barbara.~_

Not knowing how she would react, Jackie proceeded cautiously. "Mrs. McGee, my name is Jackie Vance, my husband is the Director of NCIS." Over the phone's speaker was a broken sob and then rushed words.

_~My son, how is he? Is he all right?~_

"He's been badly injured, Mrs. McGee, but he's hanging on. I'm calling the families to offer help with travel here to DC."

_~I'm sorry, but my husband has forbidden Sarah and I from going down there. My health is poor and I would just be in the way, but my mother-in-law is on her way there.~_

The order from the Admiral wasn't a surprise after her conversation with Clayton, but it still angered Jackie. "If you would like to come, I can make the arrangements, whatever assistance you might need."

_~Thank you, but I can't defy my husband. Perhaps in a few days, when things calm down, but for now, I'll trust Penny to be there for Tim.~_

Jackie took a deep breath to force herself to stay calm. "All right, does your mother-in-law need accommodations while she's here, or someone to pick her up? Do you know what airport?"

_~She was coming back from a lecture tour and we got her flight re-routed at Chicago. She's flying into Harrisburg, which is the closest they could get her, and from there she's renting a car.~_

Jackie couldn't believe her luck. "Would she like some company in the car? Agent Gibbs' father is also on his way to the airport in Harrisburg."

_~That would be wonderful. She's been flying for almost fourteen hour and I'm worried about her driving alone.~_

"Jack's a good man, now give me your mother-in-law's contact information and I'll take care of the rest" Jackie carefully wrote everything down and promised to call immediately if there was any change in Tim's condition.

She managed to keep her temper in check until she hung up the phone and turned to the other women. "If a husband of mine ever forbade me from seeing my critically injured child, I'd kick his backside so hard his cover wouldn't fit on his head."

First Pamela, then the rest of the ladies started giggling, the momentary humor a welcome relief.

-NCIS-

Proud of his plan, Brad Pitt arrived back in Gibbs room with a wheeled reclining chair he'd snagged from the dialysis unit on the second floor. It would give him the maneuverability to get Gibbs right next to McGee while so much equipment was surrounding his bed without compromising any of Gibbs' medical needs. Two orderlies were with him and they quickly got the injured man transferred over, along with his IV's and the catheter bag.

"Okay, we're going to take the scenic route. First stop, ICU."

From the back entrance of the Emergency Department, it was a short trip down a brightly lit corridor to the back entrance of the Intensive Care Unit. Gibbs was grateful to bypass both waiting rooms as he was not prepared to deal with anyone beyond his own team.

Once they were there, a nurse met them at the door to McGee's room to lay down the law. "Dr. Morgan isn't real happy about this, but since there's no family here for Agent McGee yet, he'll allow it. Ten minutes is all you get, though, and if any of the alarms go off..."

Gibbs held his hand up. "I'll get out of the way, I promise." She studied him for another long minute before moving away from the door.

Stan stayed out in the hallway, watching through the window as Dr. Pitt wheeled Gibbs into the room. Once Gibbs was settled, he stepped to the computer terminal to review McGee's case and give Gibbs the illusion of privacy with his agent.

"Ah, Tim." Gibbs didn't even know where he could touch the injured man. The hand closest to him didn't have any tubes in it, so Gibbs gently wrapped his own hand around it, suddenly aware of how rough and calloused his fingers were. Worried about causing more pain, he used the backs of his fingers when he snaked his other hand through the medical equipment to touch the cold cheek.

"You just keep hanging in there, McGee. You don't have permission for anything else. We need you, son. The team is counting on you to pull through." Gibbs felt his throat tightening as his words dried up, so he sat quietly and took in every detail. The two black eyes. The clear plastic tube pumping air into his lungs. The thick gauze pad that covered the incisions across his abdomen. The drains visible under the edge of the pad. The bloody fluid collecting in bags on the side of the bed. The slow, unsteady heartbeat tracing bright green against the black screen of the monitor. The unnatural paleness of the skin, contrasting with the deep red of the blood transfusion that didn't seem to be doing enough – too slow to keep up with the massive injuries.

Gibbs jumped when Brad touched his arm. "I'm sorry, it's time."

"Yeah, okay." Shifting slightly, Gibbs leaned as close to Tim as he could. "You're not alone, Tim and you're going to be fine." He squeezed McGee's hand one last time and he felt the ghost of pressure against his own hand in return. "That's it, McGee. You keep fighting."

Slightly relieved, Gibbs let Brad wheel him out of the room, but in the hallway he caught Stan's arm. The other man knew what was being asked of him. "It's okay, Boss. I'll keep checking on him and reporting in to you and DiNozzo both."


	16. Chapter 16

**a/n - Well, Army boy is somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, on his way to Germany while Stateside we survived potty training. See you all on Wednesday, let's see if you liked this chapter.**

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Once she had the meeting between Jackson Gibbs and Penny McGee arranged, Jackie moved on to the next name on her list. She'd heard Leon mention Anthony DiNozzo Sr. several times over the years, and not always in the most flattering of terms, so she wasn't sure what to expect. Pamela joined her at the kitchen island.

"Susan Balboa had already coordinated with the family of her husband's team, but I helped her get transportation set up and reserved the rooms they'd need at the Navy Lodge. How are you doing with Gibbs' team?"

Jackie took a sip of her coffee and made a face at how cold it was. Dumping the remains into the sink, she refilled her cup before making the rounds with the pot. "Jack Gibbs will be driving in with Penny McGee. Her daughter-in-law was pretty worried about her driving down here tonight, so that seemed to help. Tony DiNozzo's father is next on my list. Have you ever met him? Leon seems to – question – his motivation at times."

"That would be a good way to put it." Pamela leaned against the counter as she thought about how to word it. "There's times that the women at the Agency want to kill Agent DiNozzo. He can be rude and sexist and he rubs the brass the wrong way, but at the same time, there's just something about him. Gibbs wouldn't put up with anyone he doesn't think is worth it, and I've heard McGee tell people that there's nobody he'd rather have at his side in a firefight. His dad, well, he's Tony without the moral code, or at least a very different code. Kind of reminds me of a used car salesman, but with wandering hands."

Jackie had to laugh at the description. "I'll keep that in mind."

-NCIS-

The slightly improving numbers Brad saw on McGee's chart weren't reassuring enough to face the questions he knew were coming, so when he saw Dr. Morgan he detoured them enough to talk to him.

Looking up, the older man knew what was coming. "Brad."

"Tom." Dr. Pitt introduced his patient. "This is Jethro Gibbs, Agent McGee's team leader and his medical proxy. Gibbs, this is Thomas Morgan, one of the finest trauma surgeons I've ever worked with."

Gibbs shook the man's hand. "Dr. Morgan, thank you for everything you've done for Tim. I really thought we were going to lose him."

"Honestly, so did I." Morgan glanced over through the window at the man they were discussing. "We're still not out of the woods, but at least he stopped losing ground."

"What happens now?"

"Now, it's a waiting game. Hopefully, we've plugged enough of the holes to give his body to heal."

"Will he heal?"

Morgan pursed his lips as he thought about his answer. Knowing the man was ex-military, he decided to be blunt. "I don't know. There's a great deal we can do to repair the abdominal injuries, but it's his lungs I'm worried about. There's no way to tell yet how much damage he's suffered. It's possible that we'll have to remove some of the lung tissue that's too badly damaged. Worst case scenario, we're talking about a transplant to keep him alive. Even the best possible outcome is going to leave some scarring in his lungs."

"Damn." Gibbs rubbed his hand across his mouth. "Is there any good news?"

"Yeah, he's still alive. I must admit, I didn't expect him to make it out of the operating room." Having made his point, Dr. Morgan continued. "Most of the damage to his liver was localized in the right lobe, which we removed. If that amount of damage had been spread between both lobes, we would not be having this conversation. His eardrums ruptured from the intense wave of air pressure, but there's enough tissue left that they should heal without a significant loss of hearing. His pupils are reacting to light, which is good."

Gibbs remembered back. "He couldn't see when I found him."

"Flash blindness, most likely. By the time he's off sedation, I expect it to have resolved."

"And if it hasn't?"

"Let's not borrow trouble, all right? For the next twenty-four hours, let's just focus on keeping him alive. After that, we worry about infections and whether he's able to breathe on his own."

Gibbs nodded slowly, realizing how long of a recovery McGee was facing.

-NCIS-

Anthony DiNozzo, Sr. had found a quiet bar far away from his usual haunts. He tapped on the bar, not taking his eyes off the televised coverage of the bombing in DC. "Another scotch, neat."

The drink appeared in front of him. "Here you go, sir." Scotch delivered, the bartender reached to change the channel, but Senior grabbed his arm.

"Don't." Anthony watched as the footage looped again. "My son was in that building."

The unfamiliar man that had been slowly nursing his drinks suddenly made sense. "I'm sorry, is he okay?"

Taking another small sip, Anthony never looked away. "I don't know."

When his phone finally rang, he stared at the screen. It wasn't a number he recognized, but it was a DC area code. Taking a deep breath, he answered it right before it would have gone to voice mail. Behind the counter, the bartender casually watched.

"Yes, this is Anthony DiNozzo, Sr."

_~Mr. DiNozzo, this is Jackie Vance, Director Vance's wife.~_

"Mrs. Vance, is there... is my..."

_~Tony was rescued from the building and is in stable condition at Bethesda Hospital.~_

"Thank God." The relieved father rubbed his stinging eyes. "Do you know how badly he's hurt?"

_~I don't know all the details, but I know that he regained consciousness a little bit ago. I'm helping the families involved with their travel arrangements.~_

"Thank you, but I'm not sure if he'll want me there. Junior usually doesn't tell me when he gets hurt, guess it was too many times I wasn't there for him."

_~I'll leave that you, Mr. DiNozzo. We've arranged housing at the Navy Lodge for all the families if you decide to come. Take my number and let me know if you change your mind. We can help get you on a Navy shuttle flight, also if that would help.~_

When the call was finished, Anthony was surprised when another drink was set in front of him, this time a bourbon. He looked up and the bartender had a drink held up in his own hand. "Sounds like a celebration is in order."

Grinning in relief, Anthony clinked his glass against the other in a toast before gulping it down. "The DiNozzo luck held out again."

"You should go."

"What? You kicking me out of the bar?"

A wry smile from the old man. "No, I'm telling you that whatever happened in the past doesn't matter. All that's going to matter to your kid is that you're there for him now."

-NCIS-

Deep in the heart of the headquarters of Mossad, Eli David poured over every scrap of information they'd collected on the aftermath of the bombing. Liat Tuvia entered the room. I have accessed the patient list at the Navy hospital. Ziva's name is listed as an admitted patient. However, I cannot get into any of her medical records yet."

"At least I know my Ziva is alive, Liat. That is enough for now." Despite his confident statement, Eli's phone had barely made a sound before he scooped it up. "Yes, this is Director David."

_~Eli, it's Jackie Vance. I have no idea what time it is there, but I wanted to let you know about Ziva.~_

"Do not worry about the time, Jackie. We have been on alert since NCIS was attacked. Tell me, please. All we know is that she is in a hospital there."

_~She has a head injury, but she's currently stable and responding to treatment.~_

"That suggests that her condition was not stable earlier." He heard a sigh before Jackie explained further.

_~She ignored her own injuries to take care of her teammates with more obvious injuries.~_

"How bad?"

_~There's no easy way to say it, Eli. Ziva suffered a seizure before they knew she was hurt, but they've been able to control the pressure in her skull since then and they're very confident that she should make a full recovery as long as there's no further complications and she does what she's told.~_

Eli knew his surviving child quite well. "And therein lies the difficulty. Is... is she awake?"

_~She's sedated at the moment.~_

"Probably for the best if they expect her to stay in bed with so much to be done. Tell me, do they suspect any permanent damage?" Eli struggled to keep his voice steady, especially with several operatives in the office, listening in.

_~My contact at the hospital suspects that the most difficult lasting effect will be the the fact that she won't be allowed to drive for at least six months.~_

Eli had to chuckle. "I have seen my daughter drive, her team may find that a relief. Her team, did they also survive? What about Leon? I saw him in the footage, but is he all right?"

_~All of her team survived. Agent McGee is still very critical and could go either way, but the rest of them are in stable condition. Leon finally let them stitch up his arm, but now he's back at the Yard. He'll be there until they remove... the last of the bodies.~_

"Of course." It was exactly what he knew his old friend would do. "Tell Leon that we are here for whatever is needed and tell Ziva..." He paused, struggling to find the right words. "Tell her she is in my heart."

-NCIS-

Deep inside the building, Jimmy finished with another body and slowly straightened his back as two Navy corpsmen picked up the body bag and took it out to the tent where the bodies were lines up. Behind him, Ed tried to flex his stiff knees.

"Maybe we should take a break, Jimmy."

Jimmy was already examining the next body trapped in the rubble. "That's fine, Ed. Let Dr. Gutterman know so he can send me somebody."

"I meant both of us. You must have worked past your break by now."

Jimmy shook his head. "We don't work that way."

Not liking the exhaustion he saw on his new son-in-law's face, Ed pressed on. "They're dead, it's not like they're going anywhere."

"No, they're not. Not until we've examined each one and recorded every bit of information about their identity and how they died. This isn't like the funeral parlor, Ed. There are families out there waiting to know if their loved ones will ever come home again. They're praying that the person they're missing is going to turn up alive and terrified that they won't. Director Vance can't tell them until we identify the bodies."

Jimmy took a deep breath, reminding himself that in Ed Slater's world, the bodies arrived already identified, the families informed. He never had to face the sobbing mother begging for answers or the stoic husband asking if his wife had suffered. Forcing himself to speak calmly, Jimmy continued. "We're the only ones that can give these families closure. I've worked with the people here for years, Ed. The least I can do for them is to make sure their families get that closure as soon as possible. I don't expect you to keep up with the demands here, it took me years to build up to that point. So, it's okay – take a break and bring me back a water bottle when you're done."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I'm just glad this is something most people never experience." Jimmy gave a sad smile and returned to his work. Feeling guilty, Ed decided to take a break just long enough to go get two water bottles.

-NCIS-

If any of the nurses were surprised to see a patient wheeled into Neurology without a head injury, they didn't show it, and Dr. Pitt parked Gibbs next to the second set of elevators. They only had to wait a few minutes before the elevator arrived. Gibbs watched carefully as Ziva was moved into the hallway.

"Hey, kid."

She smiled at the familiar term as her eyes sleepily opened. "Gibbs?"

"Yeah, how ya' doing?"

"Cannot seem to stay awake." Blinking, she looked around and became alarmed. "Abby? Where is Abby? I promised you that I -"

"It's okay, Ziva." Gibbs cut her off before she could hurt herself. "You took care of Abby, she's fine. Now you need to get better."

He stroked his thumb across her forehead, watching as she calmed back down. "That's it, shh, you need to stay calm and let the medicine do its job.

"Gibbs?"

Her confusion was apparent, so was the underlying fear if you knew what to look for. He cupped his hand against her cheek and waited for her to look at him. He could tell that the drugs were pulling her under again. "You're going to be fine, Ziva. We're all going to be fine. Now, you and Tony are going to take care of each other and in a few days we'll all be back together. Okay?"

"Promise?"

"I promise."

She was asleep again, but he was sure that she'd heard him.

Dr. Pitt had been quietly observing his patient since before they'd visited McGee. He's watched that tight pit of fear that Gibbs was trying so hard to hide, slowly unravel as he'd seen and touched the members of his team. The man had to be beyond exhaustion, but they were almost done. Smiling, he leaned over and clasped Gibbs' shoulder. "As soon as they get Ziva settled in the room they'll move DiNozzo in, but you'll get a few minutes to see him. After that, you're going to your room with no arguments, alright? Abby's already there and waiting for you."

Gibbs nodded as he closed his eyes for a minute. "That was our deal."


	17. Chapter 17

**a/n - I debated quite a bit on this chapter, but I ended up moving a lot back into the next chapter as I wanted the focus of this chapter to be the conversation between Gibbs and Tony.**

**One sharp eyed reviewer noticed that I used McGee instead of Langston for Penny's last name. It's a plot point, don't get ahead of me :)**

* * *

Out in the hallway, Gibbs listened as they transferred Ziva to her bed. She didn't wake up, but that wasn't a surprise, even if he hated seeing her so weak and disorientated. Stan nodded to him and left to return to the ICU to check on McGee. Every time he heard the elevator chime, Gibbs would look up, but it was the third chime that gave him the results he wanted.

"DiNozzo."

"Boss? Oh, thank God." Tony reached out, fumbling for Gibbs' arm. Knowing that the younger man needed the physical proof that he was alive, Gibbs grasped his hand. The returning squeeze was almost painfully tight.

Seeing the relief on her patient's face, Melissa Andrews knew how important this disruption to the routine was for him. Patting his shoulder, she and the attendant stepped away, giving them at least the illusion of privacy.

"Stan told me you were alive, but I... I..."

"You needed to see for yourself. I know the feeling, DiNozzo." Gibbs held on for a minute more, telling himself that it was for Tony's sake.

"Yeah." Tony seemed self-conscious about his mini-breakdown and Gibbs let go, giving him a chance to pull himself back together.

"How ya' doing?" Gibbs looked him over carefully. There was a dark bruise on his arm, apparently from when he'd unsuccessfully tried to protect his head from the falling debris. Other than that he looked remarkably unscathed unless you looked closer and saw the somewhat unfocused eyes and the slight tremble, or heard the nervous undertone to his babble.

"Me? I'm fine boss, I mean, why wouldn't I be fine? I just can't convince anybody to let me go back to work. We need to get Dearing, I mean, I know we need to rescue people first, but we can't let him get away and we can't wait around for some other agency to catch him because then we'd never hear the end of it and you know how Fornell likes to rub your nose in it when he can. Not that you ever give him the chance, but you know he's just waiting for that one time and..."

"Tony."

"Please, Boss. Ziva can't do it, but at least let me go back to work. I know I screwed up, but let me try to fix it."

Trust DiNozzo to try and take the blame for a madman targeting the Navy, the Agency and Gibbs for something that happened before Tony ever heard of NCIS. Gibbs knew a few simple words wouldn't fix it, and head slapping the man in the middle of the Neurology Department probably wouldn't go over well, so Gibbs was going to have to actually talk it out with him. First, he had to figure out what Tony thought he'd done wrong. "What'd ya' screw up, DiNozzo?"

"I didn't order McGee out of the building. I'm the senior agent and I just left him."

"What was he doing?" Gibbs knew, but he wanted Tony to sort it through on his own.

"McGee called dispatch for the evacuation order."

"If he's the one that sent out the alarm, then wouldn't he have known about the evacuation?"

Tony couldn't believe how obtuse the older man was being. "Of course he knew about it, but Stan said he stayed behind."

"Do you know why?"

"Stan said that one of his computer searches found something on Dearing."

"You really think he'd just walk away from that kind of information after everything Dearing has done? How long have you worked with him?" Gibbs continued to gently lead Tony to the understanding he knew was buried under the confusion of the concussion.

"It's my job to keep him safe."

"And it's my job to keep all you kids safe. You saying I screwed up too, DiNozzo?" Gibbs' question stopped Tony and Gibbs used the break to squeeze his arm in support. "McGee will be the first one to tell you that it was his job to track Dearing. Would you have walked away from a chance to take him out?"

"No. God no, but..."

"But it was his choice to make. It was a hell of a brave thing to do, be proud of him."

"He's not that green little probie anymore, is he, Boss?"

Gibbs had to smile as he shook his head. "He hasn't been for a long time. Now, what else are you gnawing on?"

The words popped out, probably before they even registered with DiNozzo. "I didn't protect Ziva. She was right next to me and I didn't even know she was hurt, Boss."

"Pretty hard to know much of anything when you're out cold. According to Ziva, you never regained consciousness while the two of you were trapped in the elevator." Gibbs was pretty sure that was the crux of the problem. For a man of action, like Tony considered himself, to have been knocked unconscious during the emergency would be a bitter pill to swallow. "Not your fault, DiNozzo."

"Yeah." He didn't look at all convinced and Gibbs knew he wouldn't move past it until he felt somehow punished or at least had to justify his actions in some way. There was one thing he and Ziva had done that Gibbs wasn't sure about, so he decided to start there. "What in the hell were you and Ziva doing in an elevator during an evacuation?"

-NCIS-

Palmer stood in the hastily erected tent, staring at the rows of body bags. Thirty-six bags, it could have been much worse, but it was certainly bad enough. As soon as the identification numbers were logged in, each bag would be loaded up and taken away – scattered among assorted local and federal agencies with facilities that NCIS no longer had. He hated that strangers would be the ones performing the final exams, but there was no real choice in the matter. A sound behind him caught his attention and he turned just as Jordan Hampton dropped an armload of clothes and bags on a folding table.

"Jimmy?"

"Dr. Hampton, thank you for your help today."

She looked sad and tired, much like Palmer felt. "I'm glad to have helped, I just wish it hadn't been necessary."

"Yeah." Jimmy looked down at the long rows. "As much as I want Dr. Mallard to be all right, I'm glad he'd not here for this. He's autopsied too many of his friends over the years. It's not right."

"It never is." Jordan was worried about the young man her old flame was so fond of, and knew she and Director Vance had made the right decision. Jordan found the bag she was looking for and opened it as she talked.

She held out a dirty and singed stuffed hippo. "One of the techs found this. It's been cleared for evidence and Director Vance said it was okay to release it." Jordan watched as Jimmy reverently took the familiar item. "You've spent enough time with the dead today, Jimmy. It's time to focus on the living."

Jimmy brushed his fingers against the fur, automatically trying to clean it before giving it a squeeze. The familiar sound made his smile. "Abby must be missing this."

"I'm sure she is, so go to the hospital and see your friends." He looked torn, so she waved her hands. "Go on, one of my guys will drive you – and Jimmy?"

"Yes, Dr. Hampton?"

"Let me know how Ducky's doing, okay?"

-NCIS-

_What in the hell were you and Ziva doing in an elevator during an evacuation? _

Tony flinched, expecting a head slap, but it never materialized. Instead, Gibbs' voice was gentler. "Do you remember getting on the elevator, Tony?"

"Yeah." He pinched the bridge of his nose as he thought back to his last memories before the bomb exploded. "We'd finished evacuating the second floor and we were going up to the third floor to make sure everybody was on their way out. The stairs were packed with everybody going down, but we needed to go up."

Right or wrong, once explained it made perfect sense. "And rather than fight through the crowd, you jumped in the elevator."

"Stupid, right?"

"Maybe, but I'd have done the same thing." Gibbs' confession brought Tony's head up to listen intently. "Right or wrong, we each did what we felt was the best thing to do. There's no point in second guessing ourselves. Especially when our team needs us."

Gibbs could literally see the guilt sliding away, replaced with determination. "Are Ziva and McGee going to be all right, Boss? What about Abby?"

"Abby wasn't really hurt, but she breathed in some nasty stuff in the lab. They'll keep her for a few days until it's out of her system. She and I will share a room so I can keep an eye on her. Ziva's stable and should be fine as long as she doesn't push too fast. That's your job, Dr. Pitt pulled some strings to get you and her in the same hospital room. That way you two can take care of each other."

"I'm fine, Boss."

"Second severe concussion in less than a year, DiNozzo. Let's try to not scramble those brains of yours any further, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, okay, but what about McGee? He's all alone."

Gibbs hated it, too. "He's going to be in intensive care for a while, there's nothing we can really do about that, just do our best to be recovered by the time he's awake."

"Is he in a coma?"

"No, he's sedated." Gibbs paused, not knowing exactly how much Burley had told him already. "He's on a vent to let his lungs heal."

Tony had read up on bomb blast injuries when Gibbs and Ziva went to Afghanistan. Now he wished he didn't know quite so much. "What's wrong with his lungs? Is it from the bomb blast or something else?"

Gibbs hadn't done the reading, but he had some first hand knowledge plus he'd seen McGee. "It's from the blast, but it's too early to know how much of the damage is permanent."

"That doesn't sound good, Gibbs."

"He's still alive, DiNozzo, and that surprised the hell out of his doctors. He's got a long road ahead of him and he's going to need our help, so we need to be ready for him. That means for now we do what the doctors tell us."

"And Dearing? We just sit here while he's on the loose?"

Gibbs decided that Tony had enough to deal with. "For now, yeah. At the moment he's the FBI's problem."

"Guess we don't have a choice." Tony leaned back and closed his eyes as his bed was moved into the room. He had noticed that Gibbs didn't discuss his own injuries, but Tony figured he'd get more information out of Stan on that subject.


	18. Chapter 18

**Everybody have a good weekend? Enjoy the little one shot I posted Friday? When I'm writing something plot-heavy, sometimes I have to whip out a little piece of fluff or h/c, just to give myself a little break. Now, I'm back on this, and playing with a little h/c piece on the side (a _Dog Tag_ tag) I got to talk to Army Son yesterday, so it was a good day.**

**Not a terribly huge chapter today, but Wednesday's chapter needed to be separate from this.**

* * *

"Thanks for the ride, Ed."

"You want me to stay, Jack?"

Bag in hand, Jack leaned over to look in the car window. "Nah, that's okay. Her flight should be arriving soon."

The Sheriff gave a nod as he put the car back into drive. "All right then, tell Leroy I hope he and his team are okay, and you take it easy."

Jackson slapped the top of the car and then stepped back to watch it drive away before heading into the terminal. It took him a few minutes, but he found the rental car desk near baggage claim. He settled into a chair where he could see the reader board that showed the incoming flights. The flight from Chicago was the last one of the night and twenty minutes later Jackson was watching the passengers carefully as they collected their bags. There were only three women traveling alone that were of the right age and he watched carefully as one was met by family and one went straight out to long term parking. That left only one and, as expected, she dragged her suitcase over to the rental car desk so Jackson climbed to his feet to join her.

"Mrs. McGee? Timothy's grandmother?"

Penny swung around at the sound of her married name. "Actually, I go by Langston now instead of McGee, Penny Langston, and you are?"

He smiled and held out his hand. "Jackson Gibbs, ma'am. The Director's wife thought I could catch a ride with you and your daughter-in-law was worried about you driving to DC by yourself."

"Jethro's father? Timothy has mentioned you." Penny handed over her ID and credit card to the clerk as she signed the papers for the rental car. "Was he hurt in the explosion? All I know is that... that Tim was hurt."

"He'll be all right and so will Tim. I'm sure of it." Jack took her arm and they set off for the rental lot. "He's a strong one, they all have to be if they're on Leroy's team. So it's Mrs. Langston, you've remarried?"

Bags in hand, Penny found her escort surprisingly comforting. "Actually it's my maiden name. Despite my husband's concerns and the Navy's traditions, I always kept my name for professional reasons."

"Really? Good for you. In our generation it took a strong woman to stand up for herself."

"My late husband would have called it stubbornness. In fact he did, and quite often at that." Penny gave a fond smile at the memory.

Jack smiled at his own memories. "My Ann was a stubborn one too, but with Rosenberger as her maiden name, I think she was glad for Gibbs."

For the first time since she'd gotten the call about the bombing, Penny had to laugh. "You might be right."

It only took a few minutes to load their baggage in the car and with Jack navigating, they were quickly out of the airport and on the road that would take them to DC. Once they were on the highway, Penny glanced over at her companion. "Timothy talks about you so much, I feel like I know you already"

"He's a good boy."

"Yes, he is. It wasn't until I was involved in one of his cases that I realized how little I know of the man he's become. He rarely talks about himself, I'm afraid you might know him better than I do now." There was a flicker of sadness that crossed her face before she put on a brave front. "I know the boy he was, but tell me about the man he's become."

Jackson leaned back in his seat with a smile. "Let me tell you about the first time I met young Timothy. There was a case that brought Leroy back to our hometown of Stillwater..."

-NCIS-

Jimmy found the room easily enough and just stood in the doorway, enjoying the sensation of seeing a familiar figure that was alive and relatively unmarked. His silent visit in ICU had almost been his undoing, watching the machines breathe for McGee, who looked too much like some of the bodies he'd pulled out of the building.

Now he had to smile softly at Abby, looking childlike in her sleep, clutching a pillow. He crept in, carefully easing the pillow out of her arms and replacing it with the battered hippo. Abby didn't wake, but she happily snuggled down down against the familiar item. Jimmy watched for a moment, smoothing the blanket over her shoulder, then turned to leave.

In the hallway, Gibbs was being brought out of the elevator. "Hi, Agent Gibbs."

"Palmer."

The younger man looked beyond exhausted, but before Gibbs could say anything, he started to explain. "I know it's way past visiting hours, but I just needed to see somebody that was still alive. Stupid, I know, but..."

"Not stupid at all, Palmer, it's been a hell of a day. Stan told me that you came back and about Ducky, thank you. You've been at the Yard all this time?"

"Yeah, we just recovered the last of the bodies."

Gibbs winced at the thought. "What's the count so far?"

"We recovered thirty-six bodies, three more died here in the hospital."

"Damn it." Gibbs closed his eyes for a minute. "Anybody unaccounted for?"

"The body count matches the number of missing. Until we confirm the identities of the bodies, Director Vance said we'd go with that."

"Not much of a honeymoon."

If he had a dollar for every time he'd been told that,Jimmy Palmer would be a wealthy man. He shrugged as he struggled to put it into words. "Other agencies will be making the official identifications, but I knew Dr. Mallard would have wanted to personally make sure they were recovered properly and handled with respect and since he couldn't be here to do it... I wanted to stand in for him."

Gibbs' throat felt tight as he swallowed. "That'll mean a lot to Ducky when he's back on his feet."

"Hope so." Jimmy shuffled his feet as he stared at the floor. "Well, they'll want to get you in your room. Abby's asleep, but Dr. Hampton's team found Bert and I thought she'd like to have it."

"She'll appreciate that, and Jim?" Gibbs waited until Jimmy was looking up at him, surprised at both the tone and use of his first name. "You did Ducky proud today."

Jimmy beamed as the praise sunk in. "Thank you, Agent Gibbs, that really means a lot."

-NCIS-

"And then Leroy said that the XO was ranting and raving about NCIS and how they should just throw the damned Koala overboard while Tim was holding it out in front of him. Apparently the XO scared the poor thing so much that it peed all over the man's shoes." Jack was laughing and shaking his head. "Your grandson looked almost as scared as the Koala, the way Leroy told it, but he held his ground and the critter was handed over to the local zoo when they docked."

Penny was laughing, too. "Tim never told me that story. He didn't get into any trouble over that, did he?"

"Nah, the Captain was standing next to Leroy, saw the whole thing. The two of them had quite a laugh behind closed doors later. Besides, Leroy wouldn't let anything happen to one of his kids."

"He really thinks of them that way? That they're his kids?"

"Oh, yeah, they've his kids alright." Jack softly smiled as he nodded. "My grandkids, too. Hope you don't mind sharing Tim."

Penny became thoughtful as she returned her attention to the road. "I think right now, we can use all the family we can get."

"We'll get them through this." Jack reached out and laid his hand over Penny's. "You can count on that."

-NCIS-

"Ziva, hey." Once Tony had talked the nurse into pulling back the curtain, he'd rolled onto his side to watch her. She had been sleeping at first, but now she was shifting around on the bed. "You okay?"

"I hate being in the hospital."

He'd already learned his lesson about rolling his eyes with a concussion, but it was a near thing. "Well yeah, we all do, but I don't think we've got a lot of choice at the moment. I overheard the nurses talking. They've heard about us and they hid our clothes, the Boss's too."

Staring at the ceiling, Ziva smiled. "They must have been speaking of you and Gibbs. I do not have a reputation in the hospital."

"Well, guilty by association, then." Tony was silent for a minute as he debated asking. Finally, his need to know outweighed his fear of the knowledge. "How bad was it?"

Ziva didn't speak for a long time and when Tony looked closely, he could see a trail of moisture from the corner of her eye into her hair. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me."

"I have seen more bombed buildings than I care to admit. This was worse, not because of the physical damage, but... In Mossad it was easier, because we learned not to care, not to get close to the people we worked with. This... it felt very personal."

Tony couldn't remember seeing her so raw. "It was personal, Ziva. It had nothing to do with politics or ideals. It was one sick, twisted man and he attacked us in our headquarters, our home, the one place we should have been safe."

"There is no place that is safe, Tony. Our mistake was in forgetting that."

"If we start thinking like that, then Dearing wins. I'm not going to give him that satisfaction."

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

It was the first flash of anger he'd seen from her since his arrival in the room and Tony was glad to see it. "We hunt down that SOB and we take him down."

"How do you propose we do that? Look at us. Gibbs and Abby are hurt, you and I cannot even get out of these beds. The only one left is McGee and he cannot take on Dearing by himself."

Tony wasn't going to tell her, at least not that night, but she looked over in time to see the expression on his face at the mention of McGee's name.

"No, please, no."

"He's alive, Ziva, but he was caught in the blast."

"How bad?"

Tony shrugged and rolled back to also stare at the ceiling. "Bad enough that nobody will tell me details."

Out in the hallway a silent figure listened. He'd planned on sneaking in to see Tony and Ziva after his visit with Gibbs, but Jimmy couldn't bring himself to face either of them at the moment. He understood why no one would tell Tony any details about McGee's injuries and he couldn't bear to tell them why Ducky wasn't with him. Instead, he listened, a silent sentry until they both drifted off to what he hoped was a healing sleep. Only then did he leave, hoping for a few hours of his own sleep before facing any more of the nightmare their lives had become.


	19. Chapter 19

**a/n - Tissue warning this time out. Just a heads up - Friday's chapter will most likely be on Saturday this week. I've got ten years of homeschooling books to sort, label, price and box up this week to deliver to a sale on Saturday morning. My final edit probably won't be done until I get home. Sorry, but I have to sleep sometime. :)**

* * *

It was the middle of the night when they arrived at the hospital, but the parking lot was busy. Penny found a space, giving Jack a brave smile as she removed the key from the ignition. "All right, lets see if we can con someone into letting us visit this late."

Jack gave her a nod. "If need be, I'll distract them and you can make a run for it." Her nervous laugh told him she was much more frightened than she was letting on, so Jack rested a supporting hand on her lower back as they walked in together.

Because of the bombing the reception desk was still staffed so Penny walked straight to the desk. The woman gave an encouraging smile and welcomed them to Bethesda.

"Timothy McGee and Jethro Gibbs, they were both injured in the bombing." Penny shuddered as she said the words.

"Mr. McGee is in the Intensive Care Unit and Mr. Gibbs is up in room 913." The young woman looked up the information and rattled off the rooms without looking up. If she had, she would have seen the stunned look on Penny's face.

"Intensive Care? My grandson is in Intensive Care?"

The only other information the receptionist was able to give her were directions to the ICU. Penny didn't even register that Jack was still with her until she arrived in the ICU waiting room. "Thank you, Jack, but you should go on up and see Jethro."

"Don't you worry none. I'm right where he'd expect me to be." Jack gave her a reassuring smile before flagging down a nurse. "Excuse me, young lady, can you tell us about Timothy McGee? His grandmother and I just arrived."

"Of course. Have a seat for a few minutes and I'll find someone who can tell you about his condition and then take you back to see him." A compassionate smile and then she was gone.

Penny still looked lost, so Jack steered her toward a group of unoccupied chairs. They had just reached them when Penny stiffened. "No, I can't sit there."

Jack didn't have a clue what the problem was, but he didn't argue. Instead, he found two more chairs. Once seated, Penny stared at her hands as she twisted her ring, rotating it around her finger. Finally she looked up at Jack. "I'd hoped to never step foot in this waiting room again, not like this."

"Your husband?" Jack wasn't sure, but he had his suspicions.

"Harlan was a good man. He loved the Navy almost as much as he loved me. I tried for years to get him to retire."

Jack knew the type. "When your career is something you love, it's hard to walk away."

She was looking at him, but Jack knew she wasn't seeing him. Instead, she was lost in the memories. "It broke his heart to be chained to a landlocked desk instead of on the bridge of a carrier, but at least it made mandatory retirement easier to take. His retirement ceremony was scheduled for the third Friday in September, 2001."

It hadn't been hard to put the pieces together. "He was at the Pentagon."

"We had so many plans." Penny's voice wavered a bit before she took a deep breath and looked over at the chair she'd refused earlier. "Two weeks, Jack, two weeks I sat in that chair, waiting for news. I can't believe it's happening again. My God, what do I tell his mother? When she called me, she had no idea how badly he was hurt."

Jack took her hand, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles to calm her, just as he'd done for Ann many years ago. "Tim's a fighter. Being on Leroy's team, you know he had to be. He'll fight now, you just watch. Now, we'll find out what the doctor's have to say and then we'll know what to do."

Penny looked up at his words to see a harried looking man in scrubs approaching them, the nurse from earlier at his heels.

-NCIS-

"You can't do everything, you know."

Vance looked up to see Jarvis handing him a cup of coffee. "Thanks."

Jarvis looked around. The assorted laptops and monitors that had made up the portable video conference set up were now in the tent where there was emergency lighting. Vance was leaning over one of the technicians as he set up another connection. "Temporary facilities will be ready in the morning, can't this wait?"

"Some of that damn wiring may have ended up on a couple of the Marine Corps' Super Stallions in Helmand Providence. It's bad enough on a ship, but..."

"If a troop transport helicopter with a full load of men bursts into flames it will be a public relations nightmare, Leon."

Vance winced as the politician overshadowed the humanitarian in his friend. "I'll let you worry about the PR, I just want to make sure we don't lose any more of our people to this madman."

Jarvis took the subtle reprimand in stride. "Of course our people are the most important thing." Anything further he might have said was derailed when the awaited call arrived and Vance leaned closer the the screen in front of him.

"Colonel Taylor, do you have a status report for me?"

"We've reviewed the maintenance records and confirmed that three of our birds have your suspect wiring. Two were at the airbase and the third we were able to divert. We'll only have two functional birds in the air while we make repairs, but we can pull from the USS Bataan if need be. Barring complications, we should have all three back up and running within ten days if the new wiring harnesses arrive on time."

"Parts are being loaded onto transport at Air Station Cherry Point at 0500 local time."

"Thank you, Sir. I appreciate your quick actions, especially under the circumstances there."

"The safety of all of our people is a top priority." Vance nodded to the technician to end the call, but Colonel Taylor wasn't done.

"Begging your pardon, Sir."

Vance leaned close again. "Yes, Colonel?"

Instead of the commanding officer giving his request, a younger man stepped into view. "Captain Levine, sir. My wife, Carol, is a linguist for the Agency. I haven't heard anything, and her maternity leave wasn't supposed to start yet..."

As soon as he heard the captain's name, Leon closed his eyes as he flashed back to finding the body of the pregnant woman on the stairs. The marks had been clearly visible where she'd struggled to get away from the flames before wrapping her arms around her swollen belly. It was a last, desperate attempt to protect her unborn child before the flames consumed her. When he opened his eyes and looked at the young man half-way across the world, he knew that he didn't have to say the words.

Captain Levine throat worked as he obviously struggled. "Did she suffer, Sir?"

"No, son, it was quick. She probably didn't even know what was happened."

"Thank you, Sir, I'll resume my duties now."

Colonel Taylor rested his hand on the Captain's shoulder. "We'll get you sent home, Michael."

"To what, Sir? My squad leaves on patrol in twenty minutes, I need to be with my men."

There was nothing left to say, but Vance continue to stare at the blank screen. Jarvis stepped up behind him, watching his reflection in the black glass. "Were you lying to him?"

"Through my damn teeth, Clayton."

The SecNav thought about it. "He's not going to make it home, is he?"

More than anything at that moment, Vance wanted to wrap his hands around Dearing's throat. Exhausted and feeling every bump and scrape, he shook his head. "Not a chance in hell."

-NCIS-

Penny found herself and Jack being escorted into a smaller waiting room, where the doctor could speak to them in relative privacy. She felt a little guilty that Jack had delayed his visit with his own son, but it was overridden by her gratitude to not face this totally alone.

"I'm Dr. Morgan, I'm Timothy's surgeon and will be his primary physician while he's here in the ICU."

Accepting the handshakes, Penny and Jack sat across from Morgan. "Tell me please, is my grandson going to be all right?"

Dr. Morgan had a grave expression. "As I told Agent Gibbs, we're not out of the woods by any means, but at least he's stopped losing ground. We've operated twice already and repaired as much of the damage as we could. If he makes it through the next twenty-four hours, I'll be a lot more confident."

Penny was hanging onto Jack's hand. "He could still die?"

"I won't lie to you, ma'am. Right now, he could go either way. I don't believe his heart will handle the shock if he hemorrhages again." After years as a trauma surgeon, he'd learned not to sugar coat the truth.

She was devastated, but the scientist side needed information. "What are his injuries? What surgeries have you performed?"

Some family members were overwhelmed easily, some needed as much detail as possible. Morgan recognized that the grandmother was one of the latter. "The internal bleeding was severe enough to cause a massive blood loss, so our first time in the operating room we performed extensive exploratory surgery on Tim's abdomen. The ruptures in his spleen were too severe and his condition was too unstable for us to attempt any type of repair, so his spleen was removed.

"His liver also sustained massive damage. Luckily. most of the damage was limited to the right lobe, so we opted to also remove that. In time, his liver will regenerate and replace the lost lobe. It means a long recovery, but he would not have survived the extra hours of surgery to repair the damage and honestly I don't think we could have successfully repaired that amount of damage. We'd hoped to delay further surgery until he was stronger, but he started to hemorrhage again soon after."

"So you operated a second time?"

"Yes, the second time we removed a section of his small intestines and repaired the rest of the significant damage in his abdomen. Now he's heavily sedated and it's a waiting game. We wait to see if the repairs hold, to see if there's any further bleeding and most importantly, we wait to see how, and if, his lungs recover from the damage caused by the blast wave. He's on a respirator for the time being."

"And if his lungs don't recover?"

Despite her desire to know everything, Dr. Morgan suspected that the grandmother was at the end of her rope. "We have several treatment options to help his lungs."

Penny wasn't ready to give up. Something about the tone of the doctor's voice set her on edge. "If his lungs don't recover?"

The repeated question told Morgan that she wasn't going to give up. "We might remove part of a lung if the permanent damage is localized. If the permanent damage is bad enough throughout his lungs, he may need a lung transplant, but we're doing everything we can to make sure that doesn't happen. The human body is pretty remarkable in its ability to recover."

Realizing how tightly she was holding Jack's hand, Penny let go, clenching her fists on her lap. "What else?"

"Some fractures and lots of bruising. He was standing in front of some large windows when the bomb exploded, most of the glass was pretty pulverized, but he's got a few larger cuts and a lot of smaller ones. His eardrums were both ruptured and according to Agent Gibbs he was blind when they found him. His ears should heal with only minimal loss of hearing. I've had a specialist look at his eyes and he's not overly concerned. There was a minor corneal abrasion from some glass, but he suspects the blindness was caused by the flash of the explosion. If that's the case, then it should resolve before we let him wake up."

"When will that be?"

"A few days, probably. Right now the less stress on his body the better. Now, would you like to see him?"

Close to tears, Penny nodded and let Dr. Morgan lead the way. Jack wrapped his arm around her shoulder as they went into the room, crowded with medical equipment and personnel.

"Oh, Timmy." This time she couldn't stop the tears as she bent down to kiss the least damaged spot on his forehead. "Sweetheart, you have to stay strong. We need you so much."

-NCIS-

Scotch and bourbon were a potent mix, he was sure that was the reason his hands shook as he held the phone. "Yes, I'd like a seat on the next train to Washington DC. Coach is fine. The name is Anthony DiNozzo, Sr. Yes, an hour before boarding, thank you." He closed the phone and dropped it onto the bed before starting to pack.

-NCIS-

Jack and one of the nurses coaxed Penny into stretching out on one of the couches in the waiting room. Between the flights, the layovers and the time difference the exhausted woman had been up for almost an entire day. After getting a promise from the nurse to wake her at the slightest change she quickly dropped off to sleep, barely having time to murmur a thank you to Jack before she was asleep. Jack draped his jacket over her before making the trek upstairs.

He found the room easily enough and quietly opened the door. In the far bed Abby was burrowed down, her hippo held tightly in her arms. Jack smiled at the sight before turning his attention to the other bed. It had been many years since he'd been able to catch Leroy sleeping, even as a child he'd awaken at the slightest sound, but exhaustion and drugs kept his sleep undisturbed.

Nevertheless, he stepped quietly as he crossed the room to stand at his son's bedside. The lights were dim, but he could still see the lines of pain and exhaustion. Jack bent down, keeping his voice low as he wrapped his fingers around the lax hand. "They need you, but I'll hold down the fort until you're back on your feet, son."

He planted a soft kiss on his boy's forehead and squeezed his hand, smiling as he felt it returned.


	20. Chapter 20

**a/n - Ugh, long weekend combined with the login page not working for me on Saturday and my internet cutting in and out all day Sunday means that I never got to post. It's okay because it gave me a chance to tidy up some plot lines and get everything into the order I wanted. I believe this story has more characters in it than anything else I've written to date, especially guest and recurring characters that I've brought back.**

**Things are picking up steam today. Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, they mean a great deal. Let me know what you think of this chapter.**

* * *

It was dark when a sudden noise woke Sarah up. She listened carefully, but the house was once again silent. At one time she might have gone back to sleep, but years of listening to Tim had her on her feet. She quickly tied her robe around her waist and tucked her phone in the pocket. Easing the door open, Sarah listened again. Ragged breathing and a soft moan spurred her on and she moved down the hallway. A light could be seen under her parents' bedroom door and she rapped lightly on the wood.

"Mom, you okay? Mom?"

When there was no answer, Sarah pushed the door open. The bed was rumpled, but empty. She circled around, but the bedroom held no further clues, nor did the bathroom.

The house was only one story, a concession to Barbara's MS, and Sarah continued down the hallway. Small nightlights dimly lit the hallway and Sarah checked the living room.

"Mom? Where are you?"

From the living room, Sarah gave a quick glance in the dining room before she went into the family room. Empty again and she circled around the peninsula into the kitchen.

"Mom? MOM!" Screaming, she dropped to her knees beside her mother's still form. A bloody gash on the back of her head was the most obvious injury, matching the blood smear on the edge of the counter. When the older woman failed to respond to any of Sarah's pleading, she quickly pulled out her phone and dialed 911.

"Yes, I need an ambulance. My mother fell and is unconscious." After giving the address, Sarah almost dialed her grandmother, but she knew that Penny was with Tim and decided to wait until she knew more.

-NCIS-

"Good morning, Ducky." Breena leaned close as he opened his eyes, watching as he slowly blinked and took in his surroundings. It was not quite daybreak outside, but the dim lights inside the cardiac unit were enough to see.

"Breena, my dear," He slowly licked his lips as he continued to look around. "Such strange dreams."

Instead of answering, she held a glass close so that he could sip from the straw. His eyes cleared as she could tell the exact moment the memories returned. "It wasn't a dream, was it? The bombing really happened?"

Nodding, she set down the glass and took his hand. "Yes, it did, but they were able to evacuate a lot of people before it blew. It could have been much worse."

"There were casualties."

"Yes." Breena debated for a moment, but then decided the doctors there were right. The truth would be easier to take than what the mind could dream up under the circumstances. "Thirty-six at the scene and another three at the hospital."

"Thirty-nine souls, my God." Ducky closed his eyes and shook his head. "Where is Jimmy?"

"Jimmy flew back to act in your stead. He... he didn't want strangers collecting them."

"I'm glad." Ducky paused for a moment. "He's a good lad. It's hard, very hard, when it's people you know. Jethro and the team, did I remember?"

"They're alive." Breena rushed to reassure him as she kept an eye on his heart monitor. The nurses were watching from the nurse's station, but she couldn't keep her eyes off of it. "I talked to Mrs. Vance. Abby might be ready to leave the hospital tomorrow, but they want Agent Gibbs to stay a little longer. Tony and Ziva are both conscious and complaining."

Ducky smiled at that and Breena took a deep breath before telling him the rest. "Tim isn't out of the woods yet, but if he made it through the night, then that would be a good sign."

-NCIS-

Feeling every bit of her age, Penny groaned as she sat up, the warm coat sliding off her shoulders. Looking around, she found Jack sleeping in a nearby chair, his head tilted back as he snored softly. Not wanting to wake him or any of the other people sleeping in the waiting room, she quietly slipped over to the desk.

"Is there any change?"

"I haven't heard anything, but let me check." The nurse smiled as she picked up the phone. The conversation was too quiet for Penny to hear the other end of the call, so she waited.

"He seems a little stronger this morning. They're going to put in a chest tube in a few minutes, but after that's done and he's back in his room, you can see him again."

Penny hated the way they sandwiched the bad in between two seemingly good pieces of news. "Why a chest tube? He didn't need one yesterday."

"It's to drain the blood from his lungs to prevent them from collapsing. It's a common procedure with his kind of blast injury, but he wasn't stable enough yesterday to risk it."

"I see." She didn't, not really, but she did know what the limits of her knowledge were. She'd have to wait for Ducky to explain what they wouldn't.

Crisis apparently averted, the young lieutenant gave her a suggestion. "It will be about an hour before he's back in his room, this might be a good time to get something to eat."

"I suppose so." Penny had to think to remember her last real meal. The luau celebrating her last day in Hawaii seemed a lifetime ago. "If he wakes up, would you let my friend know where I am and that I'll bring him back some food?"

"Of course."

-NCIS-

Outside a burned out warehouse, Tobias Fornell watched as the first of the crime scene techs came out of the building, lugging large bins of evidence, followed by the ME with the body. Painfully, Fornell joined him as the body was loaded up. "We need an ID on the body, fast."

"Here's your first clue." The ME used a gloved hand to lift a set of dog tags away from the charred remains. "I wouldn't have been surprised to find Dearing wearing his late son's tags, but who in the hell is Joseph Miller?"

Tobias frowned and looked closer to see the name and number stamped into the metal. "Good question. Let me know the second you have any confirmation." His next stop was the van where the evidence was being loaded. "Tell me you found something good, Vern."

"The initial blast knocked over a heavy table, protected what landed under it." Vern held up an evidence bag, the cell phone it contained was scorched, but intact. "With any luck, we can pull the call history."

It was enough of a potential break that Fornell returned to the lab with them. Sacks was waiting when they arrived. "Doc called me, gave me Miller's ID number. Take a look at this." A copy of a mug shot was shoved at Fornell and he quickly skimmed the information.

"Same age, height and build as Dearing, eye and hair color, too. If we hadn't found the tags, we would have had to rely on dental records or DNA."

"Either way, it would have taken a few days."

Fornell nodded at Sack's observation. If it hadn't been for the infrared camera that showed the suspect's actions when the bombs went off, they would have been working under the assumption that the body was Dearing. "Yep, and he's already gotten to one dentist and we don't have his DNA on record."

"If he had it all planned out, why didn't he put the guy in his clothes with his ID, or at least make sure Miller didn't have anything on him that would identify him?"

"Because he wasn't expecting anyone to catch up with him that quick." They turned around to see Lenny standing there, a determined look on his face. "I know Assistant Director Cofield thinks that Tim, umm, Agent McGee accidentally tipped him off, but I've been all through this and there's no way. Agent McGee was too careful about covering his tracks."

"Then why was Dearing onto us?" Fornell looked around. "Anyone?"

"Crap." The muttering from the tech working on the recovered cell phone caught everyone's attention. When he looked up he was surrounded and he knew it wasn't going to be pretty. "There was a call received just before our people arrived."

"From where?"

"Submarine base up in Maine."

-NCIS-

Juggling two breakfast boxes with a tray of coffee on top, Penny still managed to pull her phone out as she walked back into the waiting room. Jack was awake and smiled as he took the food, leaving her free to make the calls she needed to make. Sipping at the bitter hospital coffee, Penny listened as Sarah's phone rang only once before going to voice mail. Surprised, she tried Barbara's number and it rang repeatedly before the message kicked on. Looking at Jack, she shrugged, but wasn't able to hide the worry in her eyes. "I guess they must not be up yet."

-NCIS-

"Well?" Sarah stood nervously at her mother's bedside as the doctor looked at her x-rays. "Was this a flare of her MS or an accident?"

"We'll have to do a MRI to see if a new brain lesion is visible, but it might be too soon to show up." The doctor rolled his chair back over to his patient, using a pen light to check her pupil reaction. "Barbara, can you tell me what happened? Do you remember how you fell?"

"I just lost my balance. One minute I was fine, just a little light headed, and the next..." She shrugged and stared at the new cast on her arm.

Sarah swallowed hard and closed her eyes. Loss of equilibrium, tremors, spasticity and numbness were all familiar symptoms. Even if it were too early for the new lesion to show up, there was no doubt. Her mother was no longer in remission. When she opened her eyes, Sarah saw the understanding on Dr. Hall's face. He nodded and stood. "I'll see about getting you admitted, Barbara, and scheduling a MRI for this afternoon."

"Is that really necessary? It's just a broken arm."

"It's not just a broken arm and it's very necessary." The doctor tilted his head and lead Sarah out of the room. Once in the hallway, he turned to look at her. "Is your father in port?"

"He's at the shipyard in Maine. I think they're still on lock-down because of the fire."

"And your brother?"

Sarah felt her throat tighten as her eyes watered. "Tim was hurt in the bombing yesterday down in DC. Did the stress set this off?"

"It's possible, there's no way to know for sure." Dr. Hall gave her an encouraging smile. "Let's just see what the tests tell us. Your mom's had an unusually long remission this time, Sarah. We knew this was coming at some point."

-NCIS-

Unlike most agents, Stan Burley never had the feeling of returning home when he was aboard the Yard, but even he was sickened by the amount of devastation. He watched as engineers moved in and out of the gaping hole that was once the front entrance before turning to find the Director.

Vance was supervising as a small group broke down the emergency video communications station, preparing to move into an empty wing of building three. He looked up to see Stan and came over to join him. "Agent Burley, what's the status at Bethesda?"

"Better, Sir. The only one left in intensive care is Agent McGee. He's still not out of the woods, but everybody else should pull through." As Vance gave a nod, Stan continued. "I know Gibbs will be asking, so I thought I'd check in on what's happening here before I go back."

"Still no word from the FBI about the identity of the body, but they were only able to get inside the warehouse a few hours ago." They both turned around when a large SUV pulled up. Without waiting for his door to be opened, Jarvis jumped out.

"Your phone's dead, Leon." He tossed a small cord to the other man. "Plug it in when you get in the new building. I'm meeting with the Crime and Terrorism Senate Committee this afternoon and I want you to sit in on the meeting with me."

It was pretty low on Vance's list, but he knew it wasn't really a request. Jarvis continued, "Take one of the agency vehicles, see if you can run home and get cleaned up first."

Looking clean and fresh for a bunch of politicians was even lower on the list. He looked over at row of black sedans, covered with a heavy coat of dust and soot before looking back at the damaged building. "Any suggestion where I'd find a set of keys?"

Before Stan could offer transportation, Jarvis snorted. "Point taken, Leon. I'll see if we can pull from the general motor pool until you get things sorted out here."

As they were discussing vehicles, a government issued sedan pulled up behind the SecNav's SUV and Fornell climbed out of the passenger side. "Your phone's dead, Director Vance."

"Can't imagine why. What have you got, Fornell?"

"Trouble." Fornell had taken the time to shower in the basement gym of the Hoover Building, even if he hadn't been home. During that time, the ME had found a medical implant that confirmed the identity of the body from the warehouse. "Body wasn't Dearing, we think Dearing left him there to throw us off. Probably would have worked, but the homeless vet still had his dog tags."

"So the man can make a mistake, that's good to know." After the last few days, that pleased Vance more than he was willing to admit.

Fornell filled them in on the rest. "Dearing received a phone call right before we moved on him, we're pretty sure that's how he knew we were coming."

Jarvis stared at him. "You've got a mole in your agency?"

"Nope." Fornell gave him a hard look. "The call came from Naval Submarine Base New London."

"Damn it." Jarvis dropped his head down as the connection was made. "I spoke to Admiral McGee there, told him how proud he should be of his son, that he risked his life to save the info we needed to catch Dearing."

"Was it a secure line?"

Jarvis bristled at the implication. "It was a secure video conference between my office and their Tactical Command Center. Whoever else was in that room had clearance to be there."

"Clearance or not, one of those people is responsible for the deaths of my people, Secretary Jarvis."

Ignoring the confrontation between the SecNav and the FBI for the moment, Vance pulled out his phone only to groan as he remembered it was dead. "Vale and his team are still on board the damaged sub, if I can't get through directly, the call will have to go through base channels."

"I don't want this mole tipped off." Jarvis turned to the only agent aboard the Yard and still on his feet. "Are you capable of handling this?"

"Of course, Sir." Stan automatically straightened up. He'd been able to lose the sling finally and after seeing the elderly man sneaking into Gibbs' room early that morning, he felt comfortable leaving.

"Good. Take the jet up there and bring back that mole." Jarvis glared at all three men before storming back to his SUV.

"Do I have time to see Gibbs before I leave? His dad's here, but..."

Fornell had a simple solution. "I'm on my way there next. I'll let him know what's going on."


	21. Chapter 21

**a/n - I'm back. Took some time to plan out the details of the next big chunk of the story, lots of plot threads and characters to keep straight. Lots and lots :) Is the weather crazy where you are? This bouncing between record breaking heat and cold/damp is about to kill me. By the time by body adjusts to one, we're at the other. Made it hard to think, let alone plan. So, you still with me?**

* * *

Anthony DiNozzo, Sr. stepped off the train, looking around. Luckily, no one was close enough to see just how nervous he was. Straightening his jacket and smoothing his hair, he gathered his bags and walked into the terminal. A vaguely familiar woman obviously recognized him. "Mr. DiNozzo, welcome back to DC. I wish it were under better circumstances."

"Pam, isn't it? How is Junior?" He followed her out to the parking lot where a car was waiting.

She smiled as she unlocked the trunk for him. "We checked a few minutes ago and he had a restful night. Visiting hours don't start until 0900 so that will give you time to settle in at the Navy Lodge. A van will be leaving the Lodge parking lot at 0830 to take all the family members to Bethesda."

"The Navy Lodge? Not my usual hotel."

Pam didn't answer as they drove away. Twenty minutes later he found himself standing in a very nondescript room with only the barest of amenities. "Not my usual hotel at all."

-NCIS-

Jack wiped his fingers with the napkin before tossing it in the empty container. Hospital cafeteria food was nothing special, but it would keep them going. "Leroy should be awake pretty soon, so I'm going back upstairs for a while. Will you be alright?"

Penny was getting more and more nervous about the lack of contact with Sarah and Barbara, but she gave him her best smile. "Of course I will. Tell him," she thought about what the nurses had told her. "Tell him, thank you for everything."

-NCIS-

Abby had never been one to do anything half-way, so when she awakened, it was instant. However, she laid perfectly still, trying to get her bearings. She'd fallen asleep waiting for Gibbs, clutching a pillow. Now, Bert was in her arms. He smelled of soot and was gritty, but she had him back. It was tempting to squeeze him tight, but instead she rubbed her face against his fur before she opened her eyes. The room was dim, but the other bed was occupied. Biting her lip as to not make any sound, she watched Gibbs. He, too, had several IV lines running into his arm, but he was very still. She would have been frightened, but she could see the steady movement of his chest.

"Go back to sleep, Abs, it's still early."

"Gibbs? How did you..." She stared, he hadn't moved, hadn't even opened his eyes.

"I can hear you thinking." This time there was a ghost of a smile on his face.

Abby rolled onto her side to better see him as she squeezed the stuffed hippo, the familiar sound a welcome touch of normalcy. "I tried to wait up for you."

"I know." Turning on the bedside light, Gibbs also rolled to his side so she could see his face. "You were tired, you needed the rest."

She hugged Bert closer, resting her chin on his head. "It wasn't a dream, was it?"

"Nope." Gibbs waited for the questions he knew were coming.

"Where's Ziva? She... something was really wrong with her, Gibbs."

"She's in the Neurology Unit and she's going to be okay."

"Really?" It was hardly a whisper, but he didn't need to hear the word. He saw the doubt and fear on her face.

"Yeah, Abs. I've seen her, talked to her. They got the pressure under control and she should be fine." Gibbs knew that she'd ask about each of the members of the team that she knew had been injured. Once that was done, she'd start asking more questions – questions that required answers he wasn't sure she was ready to hear.

"What about Tony? He was still unconscious, Gibbs. That isn't good. What if he's in a coma?"

Gibbs cut her off before she could get wound up. "He's not in a coma. Tony's awake now and I've talked to him, too. He's got a concussion, but other than that, he's in good shape."

"That's two concussions in a year, Gibbs. That's not good."

"Doesn't have to be bad, either. They're keeping a close eye on him, and he and Ziva are in the same room."

"Did we get Dearing?"

He gave her the look. "Out of our hands for now, Abby. The FBI is after him."

"Somebody from our team deserves to slap the cuffs on him, Gibbs. McGee's with them, right?"

"No, he's..."

"He's still working the crime scene, right? It seems so weird, our whole building is one big crime scene. Vance is going to at least let him take a break and come see us, isn't he?"

"Abs..."

Her eyes widened at his troubled face and she bit her lip. "You're scaring me, Gibbs."

"McGee was hurt, too. He's downstairs."

She continued to stare, shaking her head in denial. "No. No, McGee doesn't get hurt."

"This time he did, Abs."

Abby studied him for a long time before she spoke again. "He's going to be okay, isn't he?"

He couldn't outright lie to her. "Hope so."

"I want to see him." She could see the argument already forming on Gibbs' face and kept pushing. "I saw Tony when we found him and Ziva was with me for a long time, Gibbs, but I haven't seen Tim."

"Not until Dr. Pitt clears you to get out of bed."

"I'm not a child, Gibbs."

"No, you're not." Gibbs looked at her for a long moment. "I'm going to tell you basically the same thing the doctors told me. We either stay put and let those chemicals work out of our systems or we spend the rest of our lives at limited capacity. You're a scientist, Abby, you know what we breathed in."

She did know, and crossed her arms in frustration. "I hate this."

"Me too, but if we don't recover we can't take care of the rest of them when they'll need us."

"But Tim needs us now, he's all alone."

"No, he's not alone." They both looked up at the arrival of the elderly man leaning against the doorjam.

"Dad."

"Hey, son." Jackson came into the room and stopped at the side of his son's bed. Awake, he looked better than he had the night before.

The vague memory made sense now. "You were here earlier."

"Yeah, got here way past visiting hours, but they let me sneak in for a few minutes as long as I didn't try to wake you up."

"Thought I'd dreamed it."

Jack wrapped his hand around his son's just as he'd done the night before as he smiled over at Abby. "I drove in with Tim's grandmother, so he's not alone. In fact, they think I'm his grandfather."

"Really?" Jack's arrival had calmed Abby and his comment had made her smile. "You sly fox."

"I didn't lie to them, I just didn't correct their assumption – figured both Tim and Penny could use the extra support."

"Penny?" Gibbs raised an eyebrow as he watched his father. The man always had an eye for the ladies, but this was fast, even for him. "You're on a first name basis with Ms Langston already?"

"Closest flight she could get last night was into Harrisburg. I was already on my way there, so Mrs. Vance helped us meet up and we drove the rest of the way together. Poor woman flew all the way from Hawaii, was pretty exhausted. Her daughter-in-law didn't want her to face all this by herself." Jack studied his son for a reaction, but the confusion he saw answered his question before he even asked it. "You don't know about Tim's grandfather?"

Gibbs picked up on the seriousness immediately. "He was an admiral, that's all I know." He looked over at Abby and she shook her head.

"McGee never really talks about his family."

"Admiral Harlan McGee was stationed at the Pentagon on 9-11 and was just days away from retirement."

"Damn." Gibbs closed his eyes in realization. "His grandfather was killed when the plane hit."

"Actually, it took him about two weeks to die. Penny can tell you exactly which chair she sat in while she waited."

As Gibbs absorbed that discovery, Abby started to tear up. "That's awful, Jack. She must feel like it's happening all over again. She must be so scared."

"I'm glad you've been able to support her, Dad. How is McGee this morning?"

Jack debated telling him in front of Abby, but decided honesty was the best policy. "They're putting in a chest tube this morning. Apparently, he wasn't strong enough to handle it before now."

"So, that means he's better this morning?" Abby had a death-grip on Bert as she waited for the answer.

"At least a little stronger, Miss Abby." Jack smiled at her before turning back to his son. "Now, the doctors tell me that you should be fine as long as you do what you're told. You gonna behave yourself?"

"Don't think I've got much of a choice, Jack, not if I want to be able to take care of my team." The frustration was evident in his tone.

"I'm here for as long as you need me to be, so don't you worry, son. I'll take care of the kids until you're back on your feet."

"Thanks, Dad. Just knowing that someone's watching out for them is a big relief."

A knock on the door frame caught everyone's attention and they turned to see Fornell standing there. "Hope I'm not interrupting. Jethro, you look better than you did the last time I saw you."

"Yeah, well, you look like hell."

"Couldn't let you have all the fun, now could I?" Fornell held his hand out to the older man. "You must be Jack. Tobias Fornell, FBI."

Jack shook his hand. "Wish we were meeting under better circumstances, but it's nice to finally put a face to the name. Well, I'll let you boys talk. Penny's going to be calling her son soon. Admiral or not, I'd hate to be in his shoes."

"Admiral? As in Admiral McGee? What's the problem?"

The FBI agent's interest surprised Jack. "She's pretty upset that he's too busy to worry about his son. Not only that, but she can't get a hold of her granddaughter or her daughter-in-law this morning."

That caught Gibbs by surprise. "Sarah's AWOL? Does she know how badly her brother was hurt?"

Fornell interrupted, knowing that the case had to take precedence. "Umm, we've got another problem. In fact, that's part of why I'm here. Dearing knew we were coming last night and it looks like we've tracked his mole to Admiral McGee's staff."

"Damn it." Gibbs let his head drop back on the bed.

Abby started tearing up. "Gibbs, that'll break Tim's heart. He doesn't deserve any of this, not when he's hurt."

"I know, Abs." He turned to Fornell. "What's the plan?"

"Jarvis and Vance sent Stan Burley up to Maine to handle the investigation up there personally, but we need to make sure that nobody lets it slip that they're under investigation." Fornell turned to look at Jack. "The kid's grandmother can't say anything to anyone until we have the mole in custody. I'm sorry."

Jack nodded slowly as he turned to his son. "What do you want me to do, Leroy? Penny Langston doesn't strike me as the kind of woman that gonna be happy being lied to."

-NCIS-

"Ms Langston? You can see your grandson now."

The nurse's words had Penny instantly on his feet. "He came through the procedure all right?"

"Yes, in fact his oxygen levels have improved slightly. Come on, I'll take you back."

Penny settled into the chair next to the bed, leaning forward to brush her fingers down Tim's cheek. "Oh, sweetheart, they tell me that you're doing better. Soon you'll be awake and we're all going to be fussing over you. I know how much you hate that, so you'll just have to get strong enough to throw us out. We're going to have a family reunion right here at Bethesda. I'll go up to Maine and drag your father down here myself if I have to."

There was no response, so Penny started humming softly as she held his hand.

-NCIS-

Dearing listened to the phone ring a dozen times before a standard voice mail message began to play. Angrily he waited for the beep. "Dunham, where in the hell are you? I didn't buy off a judge just so that you could terrorize your damn ex-wife. The timetable's moved up. Call me back, we've got work to do."


	22. Chapter 22

**a/n - Haven't been writing much while I waited for an inflamation in my shoulder (bursitis) to subside and for a dentist appointment, which I had yesterday. Nine hours at the dentist, four infected teeth pulled, a partial made to replace them and some very good drugs. Massive antibiotics are rough on the stomach, but I'm feeling better already so they're working. Now the big thing is to wait for the swelling to go down so I can close my mouth all the way. I'm in surprisingly little pain with just a minimal level of pain meds, so here is a chapter for you before I go back to bed.**

* * *

Twenty minutes before the assigned time, Anthony Sr. found himself standing in front of the mirror in his small room. Carefully he straightened his cuffs before running his hands over his lapels. Slowly nodding at his own image, he turned and picked up his overcoat.

Downstairs he found several groups of people milling around, mostly couples. One woman was sitting by herself and he joined her. "Are you waiting for the shuttle to the hospital?"

"Yes, and you?" She slid over, making more room on the bench and Anthony sat down, draping his overcoat across his lap.

"Yes, my son was injured in the explosion yesterday." He held out his hand. "Anthony DiNozzo."

"Tony's father?"

"You know my son?"

"Ned talks about him all the time. I don't know if he's ever mentioned Ned to you."

Anthony shifted uncomfortably. "I'm afraid Tony and I don't talk as much as we should."

"That's too bad. Ned tells me that Tony has been helping to train him. I'm Nancy Dorneget." She smiled and held out her hand.

He took the offered hand, looking closely at the woman. She was nothing like the women he usually spent time with. Plain looking and simply dressed, she had probably never spent time on the French Riviera, but there was a kindness and an openness that drew him in. "Well, Nancy, I do wish we were meeting under better circumstances. How is – Ned?"

"His back was burned and his leg broken. What about Tony?"

"He's conscious, that's all I know." Through the window he saw a military shuttle pull into the parking lot. "Guess I'll find out the rest when I get there."

As the families gathered in the parking lot, it was apparent that they were the only single people in the group. Seeing that, Anthony escorted Nancy onto the bus and sat next to her. The ride was rough and she grabbed his hand as they bounced out the driveway. "I can't believe this is happening. I wanted my son to go into the family business, not something so dangerous."

Anthony squeezed her hand. "I'd hoped the same thing for Junior. Business can be ruthless at times, but people usually don't blow up their investors." He looked out the window, saw the armed escort and realized that a busload of family members would make a dramatic target. Trying not to focus on that possibility, he continued to make small talk. "Is Ned's father joining you later?"

"He left us years ago, would rather ignore the fact that he had a son than to pay child support. Now he's scraping by and I own the largest chain of dry cleaners in Arizona."

"Good for you, success is the best revenge."

"What about you? Did you raise your son on your own?"

He thought about the question. "There was a string of stepmothers after we lost his mom, but I'm afraid most of them were more interested in the perks than the job."

"That's too bad."

-NCIS-

Tony had been awake for some time. His vision was better, there was only one Ziva in the next bed now, even though she sounded like two. Becoming frustrated, he found the crumpled paper cup his pills had been delivered in and tossed it at her.

Ziva stirred slightly as the cup landed in her hair, before settling down again, her snoring even louder.

"Damn it." Muttering, he pulled the pillow over his head. He was like that when the nurse came in for their hourly check. She smiled at Tony as she tugged the pillow up to check his vitals.

Once she was done with him, she moved over to Ziva, quietly recording her observations and plucking the pill cut out of Ziva's hair. The last thing she did was to ease Ziva onto her side, silencing her snores.

Amazed at the sudden silence, Tony lifted the pillow from his head and mouthed a grateful 'thank you'. The nurse returned the smile and slipped out of the room, giggling.

-NCIS-

Sighing, Penny stood and left her grandson's bedside so that she could call his father. Duty was one thing, but it was past time for him to find a balance between work and his family. Jack was waiting for her by the chairs they'd staked out.

"How is he, is there any change?"

"They tell me that he's a little stronger, but he's still very critical." She dug her phone out of her purse. "It's high time his father started acting like one."

Jack remembered the discussion he'd just had upstairs. "What are you going to do?"

She'd flipped open the phone, but looked up when Jack laid his hand over hers, preventing her from dialing. "I'm going to tell him to climb down off his high horse and get his pompous ass here before something else goes wrong. I'll drive up there and drag him back if I have to."

"You can't do that." Still holding her hand, Jack sat down, tugging Penny into a chair.

"I can't? What do you mean, I can't?"

Jack admired her feisty attitude, but he didn't want her to make things worse for the investigation or for her family. "It looks like the man that bombed their building has a contact on your son's base, possibly on his staff."

"You're not suggesting..." Penny pressed her hand against her mouth as she thought about the implications. Jack rushed to reassure her.

"He's not a suspect right now, but if you call him and he leaves..."

"He will become a suspect." Penny finished Jack's sentence.

"And that will distract them from the real suspect, especially if he tries to frame your son."

Penny closed her eyes as she thought about the possibilities. "That would destroy Timothy if he found out."

"Yeah." Jack squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry."

-NCIS-

"Hey, Junior."

Tony looked over in surprise to see his father standing in the doorway. "Dad, you're here?"

"Had to see for myself that you were all right." Anthony eased his way into the room, rubbing his palms on his pant legs before sitting down in the chair. "Seeing the building on the television... don't think I'll ever forget that."

Senior was pale, obviously nervous, looking much like he had when Tony's mother was in the hospital. All those years ago he'd wondered why, afraid of the reasons his childish imagination came up with. Now, it was starting to make sense. "Thanks, Dad, it means a lot that you came. Do you have someplace to stay yet?"

"They have all of the visiting family staying at the Navy Lodge."

"The Navy Lodge?" Tony's eyes widened at that bit of news. "Not your usual standards."

"Didn't care." Anthony shook his head as he reached out and took Tony's hand. "Just wanted to be here for you, not screw it up this time."

Tony squeezed his father's hand. "I'm glad you're here." Keeping their voices low, Tony told him about the team and what he knew so far. He watched carefully and his dad didn't seem any more at ease. "You really hate hospitals, don't you?"

Anthony started to deny it, then shook his head. "When your mom was sick, every day I'd spend an hour pacing back and forth, trying to work up the courage just to walk into the lobby. Then I'd go in the men's room and puke for another half hour."

"Ah, Dad, I never knew." He watched as the older man struggled with his emotions before he looked over at Tony's sleeping roommate.

"She looks too delicate for this line of work, Junior."

It was an obvious attempt to distract himself from his raw emotions, but before Tony could say anything, Ziva shifted. With a loud snort, she began snoring again, even louder than before.

"Oh, my."

Tony couldn't help it, he started chuckling at the expression on his father's face. Before long, he was laughing out loud. Senior joined in and they were leaning against each other, almost in tears.

Not even Ziva could sleep through that and with another snort, she awakened and rolled over to face them. "What is so funny? People are trying to sleep, you know?"

That just made them laugh even harder and Ziva rolled back over, pulling the blankets over her head. Finally, Tony pulled away and looked closely at his dad. Behind the humor, the fear was still there. It gave him a warm feeling that his father would face his fears to see him.

"It's okay, Dad, if you need to take a break." A nurse came in with their breakfast trays.

Senior looked uncertain, then he pursed his lips as he nodded. "I think I'll go down and have a cup of coffee while you're eating, Junior."

"You should get something to eat too, Dad." Tony faltered, not knowing even where his wallet was. "Have you got enough money?"

"Don't worry about me, Junior. Remember, I always land on my feet."

-NCIS-

"What do I tell Barbara and Sarah? They can't know about this either."

"No, they can't. Have you been able to talk to them yet?"

When Penny shook her head, he continued to hold her hand as she dialed Barbara's phone again. As before, it rang until finally kicking over to voice mail. Sarah's number was next and it did not go directly to voice mail as it had earlier. Encouraged, she waited and eventually Sarah's frantic voice came on the line.

"Sarah, sweetie, what's wrong?"

Jack couldn't hear both sides of the conversation, but the expression on Penny's face told him plenty.

"How badly was she hurt? What did the doctor's say?" After a moment, Penny turned towards Jack and he leaned closer, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Now he could hear the frightened voice on the phone.

_~How is Tim? Is he going to be all right?~_

"He's getting stronger, it's just going to take time." Penny's eyes flickered up to Jack's. She was barely touching the surface, but knew Sarah was within earshot of her mother. "Just worry about your mom, Sweetheart, I'll take care of Timothy."

_~What about Daddy? Mom doesn't want me to call him, but...~_

"No, your mom's right. I'll take care of that later." When the call ended, Penny leaned her forehead against Jack's shoulder. He held on, giving her support until she was ready to talk.

"Barbara's MS is no longer in remission. She took a bad fall last night and is in the hospital."

"Is she going to be okay?"

Penny straightened up, wiping her eyes. "Eventually, but every time she has a flare up, it takes longer and longer for her to recover."

"That's why the family is so protective of her?"

"It's such a balancing act and I'm afraid Ben doesn't have a great deal of patience for such things."

Jack shifted them so Penny could lean against his side. "Maybe it's time he learned."

-NCIS-

In the outskirts of DC, polite society looked away as the homeless dug through the trash, looking for anything they could salvage. The numbers of homeless rose and fell, so one new face wasn't all that surprising. Harper Dearing kept his head down as he collected bottles, stopping only when he felt a vibration against his leg. Casually he walked away from the group until he was around the corner. Only then did he pull out his phone.

"Dunham, where in the hell were you?"

_~She took off.~_

"I don't care about your damn ex-wife. I need new ID and a safe place to regroup."

_~What happened?~_

"Gibbs' damned Geek found me"

-NCIS-

Now that her mother was finally asleep, Sarah crept out of the room. Without her mother listening, she hoped to get more information from Penny. Her call was expected, as it was answered on the first ring.

_~Sarah? Can you talk now?~_

She smiled, her grandmother always seemed to know. "Yeah, Mom's asleep. Tell me the truth about Tim."

_~Oh, Sweetheart, he's in rough shape, but he's got some great doctors. They tell me that he's doing as well as can be expected.~_

"What exactly does that mean?"

_~That means unless you want to lie to your mother you don't ask any more details. He's still alive and getting the best possible care.~_

-NCIS-

After avoiding most of Sarah's questions, Penny closed her phone and leaned against the window into Tim's room. Alarms had sounded and his room was filled with doctors and nurses. "Don't make a liar out of me, Timothy.


	23. Chapter 23

**a/n - survived the dental surgery, the bursitis that locked up my arm for a month, and now I'm back to posting. Hopefully, I'll have this story finished before the season opener. At least that's the plan. The good news is that when I was too medicated to work through the plot for this story, I did get 12 chapters of a _Dog Tags_ story done, so there will be another story to come as soon as this one is finished.**

* * *

Jack thanked the young woman at the register and walked out of the cafeteria with a large cup of coffee. The lobby was crowded, but as he waited for the elevator he saw the older version of a familiar face walking into the cafeteria. "Glad you're here, Mr. DiNozzo, your boy could use you." His words were too low to travel across the lobby, so they went unheard and Jack continued up to his own son's room.

"Here you go, Leroy. Dr. Pitt said you could have one cup."

Gibbs eagerly took the cup. "Dad, you are a prince among men."

Laughing at the blissful look on his son's face as he took a sip, Jack had to laugh. "Glad I could oblige. Now, little lady, the doc doesn't want you drinking any of that Caf!Pow..."

Abby shrugged and held her stuffed hippo closer. "That's okay, Jack."

He continued on as if she hadn't interrupted. "However, he did say that I could take you visiting."

As if on cue, a nurse arrived with a wheelchair. "All right, Miss Sciuto, your labs look good enough today that Dr. Pitt has feels that you can get out of bed as long as you don't exert yourself."

Abby had already thrown back the bedding and was swinging her legs over the side of the bed. "Okay, let's go." It just took a minute for her to be settled in the wheelchair with a blanket over her lap and Bert in her arms.

Gibbs smiled at her enthusiasm as Jack wheeled her out the door before returning his attention to the cup in his hand. It was a long way from his regular fix, but he appreciated the effort.

-NCIS-

"Daddy, you're home!" Vance barely had time to brace before two child-sized rockets launched at him.

"We were so scared, Dad." Jared was trembling as he wrapped his arms around his father's waist, just below his sister's. "Are you really all right?"

"Yeah, I'm okay." Glancing over at Jackie, who was leaning against the doorway into the kitchen, he squatted down to look them in the eye. "Really, and I'm very proud of the way you've been helping your mom."

Lily shrugged as she pulled back slightly. "We were lucky 'cause we got to see you on TV but a lot of people didn't even get that."

"Is the bad guy in jail?"

Vance ran his hand over his son's head as he straightened up. "Not yet, Jared, but we're going to get him."

Jackie chose that moment to join them, kissing Leon and hugging him tight for a moment. "You can't stay, can you?"

"No, baby, I'm sorry. Clayton expects me to join him up on the Hill to give an update."

"Promise me," She pressed her face against his shoulder. "When this is all over, promise me we can all go somewhere. Just the four of us."

Right now, that sounded like heaven. "I promise."

-NCIS-

Anthony wasn't hungry, but he did pick up a cup of coffee and a Danish that looked fairly fresh before heading to the cashier. A familiar figure walking into the cafeteria caught his attention and he changed direction. "Nancy, are you all right?"

She nodded yes, but her eyes filled with tears and Anthony automatically reached out with one arm as he set the tray down. "Tell me."

"It's so hard to see him hurt like this."

"I know, I know. At least you got to see him, right?"

"Yes, I did." Wiping her eyes, she straightened up and Anthony got the impression that she rarely showed such weakness. "I was able to talk to him for a few minutes before they came in to work on his back and change the dressings. It's going to take at least an hour before I can go back in."

Anthony picked up his tray and steered her back over to the breakfast line. "Come, have breakfast with me while you wait. Starving yourself won't help Ned at all."

-NCIS-

"Hey, look who's here." Jackson's announcement from the open door brought smiles to the faces of both occupants of the room.

Tony muted the television before tossing the remote onto the bed. "Jack, Abby, man you guys are a sight for sore eyes."

Jack wheeled Abby to a spot in between the two beds so she could reach out and hug them both. The questions were bubbling out of the Goth faster than they could answer them, but eventually she was convinced that they both were going to be all right, even though she hadn't let go of either of their hands.

"What about you, Abs, are you going to be okay?" Tony squeezed her hand, perfectly willing to let her hang on as long as she needed.

"Yeah." Suddenly self-conscious, she shrugged without looking at either of them. "I wasn't hurt at all, just breathed in some stuff in the lab. I couldn't hear for a while, but that's pretty much over now."

"Hey." Tony tugged at her hand enough to make her look over at him. "Lungs are nothing to mess with. Believe me, I know. You don't have to have bruises to be hurt."

"I know, it's just... everyone else was hurt so much worse. I feel guilty taking up a bed." Abby looked over at Ziva, remembering the last time she'd seen the other woman. "I didn't even notice that you were in trouble, Ziva."

"How could you? Neither did I. All we can do is to help each other recover."

"Yeah, we can't even be the ones to go after Dearing." Tony turned to question Jack. "What have you heard, did the FBI get him?

Jack exchanged glances with Abby before coming further into the room, closing the door behind him.

The actions brought Tony's suspicions to the forefront. "He got away from them, didn't he?"

"Yep, he sure did. Don't think we should talk about the details, though."

"Jack?"

The elderly man stepped close and leaned down to whisper in DiNozzo's ear. "He's got a mole on Admiral McGee's staff, Tony. Stan went to track him down."

"Damn it, damn it, damn it." Tony wanted to slam his head against the bed, but the hand pressed against his forehead kept him still.

"Nothing you can do about it now. Let Stan handle it."

"Yeah." Tony didn't hide his frustration. "Guess I really don't have a choice."

"Tony, the mole might be on the Admiral's staff, but the Admiral could still be cleared."

"Ziva's right, Tony. Stan will prove he's not involved and then drag him back here to be with Timmy. You'll see."

-NCIS-

"You look tired, my dear."

Breena tucked her hair behind her ears as she plastered a smile on her face. "Maybe just a little. How are you feeling?"

Ducky glanced up at the variety of bags hooked up to the tube into his arm. "Thanks to all that, I'm not feeling much of anything... except worry. I'm afraid there's nothing medicine can do for that malady."

"I know." She looked pensive for a moment, then brightened. "I talked to Jimmy this morning. He said that Abby should be released from the hospital either this afternoon or in the morning."

"That is good news – and the rest of Jethro's team?"

Knowing the question would have been coming and that Ducky was strong enough now to hear the details, Breena had grilled Jimmy extensively. "Agent Gibbs breathed in more of the chemicals than Abby, plus he's got a few cracked ribs."

"Thus making deep breathing exercises more difficult."

"Yes, the toxins are being flushed from his system, it's just going to take a little longer. He's got a burn on his leg, too, but it's not too terribly bad."

"And the others?"

"Tony has a concussion. The only reason they're keeping him in the hospital is because it's the second concussion he's had in less than a year. Ziva's head injury was worse, but Jimmy said that..." Breena's forehead wrinkled as she remembered his exact words. "Her intercranial pressure is down to the high end of normal."

"That's very good. Is she showing any sign of a deficit?"

"Apparently not."

"Excellent, now what can you tell me about Timothy? Am I to assume that he wasn't as lucky as the rest of the team?"

"No, but he's still alive. Jimmy said that under the circumstances, that was as good as they could expect right now."

"Yes, well, I'd like to speak to his physician."

Breena couldn't help but smile as the familiar reaction. "Soon, Dr. Mallard, very soon."

-NCIS-

Stan stepped of the jet, pulling out his sunglasses. A stocky man with short cropped hair stepped away from the building to greet him. "Agent Burley? Terry Vale."

"Good to meet you face to face and it's Stan. What's the situation here?"

"Everyone that was in the command center is under surveillance, calls are being monitored. I was told not to move in until you've interviewed the Admiral."

"What's your take on the old man?"

Vale snorted and shook his head. "Cold, rigid, I've never been able to get a good read on him, but it's pretty obvious he has little use for NCIS."

"Yeah, that's what I've heard. Okay, lead on."

-NCIS-

"I want to see Tim now."

"You've been out of bed for a while, maybe it'd be best if you took a rest first."

Abby shook her head, the stubborn set of her jaw showing her determination. "Not until I see Timmy. He's all alone."

"Not totally alone, little Missy." Jack knew he was fighting a losing battle, but he had to try. "His grandmother is here."

Unconvinced, she turned to the two occupants of the beds. "Have you guys seen him?"

Tony shook his head. "No, they let Gibbs in to see him for a minute, but we've been stuck in here."

"Then one of us needs to be there with him at least until Ducky gets back from Florida."

Stuck between the option of telling the three of them about Ducky or taking Abby to see Tim, Jack reached down and unlocked the brakes on the wheelchair. "All right, I'll take you to him but you can't stay for long."

-NCIS-

The first inkling of trouble Admiral McGee was aware of was the arrival of Agent Vale with an unfamiliar man. "Admiral McGee, we need to speak to you privately."

"I hope this means you people are finished interrupting our duties. Yeoman, we will be in my office. Remind Lieutenant Ramirez that his report was due at 14.00."

As the Admiral stormed past him, Stan glanced down at his watch, noting that it was only 13.45. Once they were out in the hallway, Stan pointed him in another direction. "Actually, Sir, we are using a room down the hall."

"Don't you people have anything better to do?"

"Better than tracking down a terrorist that killed thirty-nine people at NCIS? No, not really." They had entered the small room Vale had commandeered as a temporary interrogation room. He indicated a chair for the Admiral before sitting in a chair on the other side of the table, Vale joining him. The Admiral chose to stand.

Stan took a moment to study the man. Stiffer than his heavily starched uniform, he couldn't imagine the cold man thawing enough to ever father children, let alone playing the doting dad. He decided to play hardball and see what the reaction would be. "So, Admiral McGee, how'd you get hooked up with Dearing?"

"What? How dare you even suggest..."

"Were you planning on Tim being killed instantly, or were you hoping to make him suffer? Because I guarantee you, your son will be suffering for a very long time."

For a moment, Benjamin McGee was convinced that all the air had been sucked out of the room as he staggered before heavily collapsing into the chair. "He was hurt?"

"The damn building blew up, what did you think happened to him? Now, tell me exactly what happened when the video conference with the SecNav ended."

"I returned to my duties, as always." The Admiral shook his head as he remembered back. "I always do my duty."

"There's more to life than duty, Sir." Stan waited for his words to sink in then tried again. "The sailors in your command center were the only ones to hear the SecNav tell you that they'd tracked Dearing down. Did any of them leave after the call ended?"

"Damn it." Admiral McGee closed his eyes in realization. "My Yeoman offered to call Barbara and let her know that Timothy was alive and that she was to stay home."

Suspect named, Vale stepped out to confirm the information while Stan continued to sit with the Admiral. Eventually, Benjamin's curiosity got the best of him. "My son, how is he?"

Stan wasn't in the mood to sugar coat it. "When I left early this morning, he'd survived two rounds of extensive emergency surgery. They've removed his spleen, half his liver, and a chunk of his intestines. His lungs are badly damaged, it's too early to know how much of the damage is permanent. He may need a lung transplant to survive. He's covered in cuts from the flying glass and has multiple fractures. His eardrums were ruptured from the air pressure and he was blinded by the flash. Honestly, the only reason he survived long enough to be rescued was his determination to make sure the information he'd found made it to Gibbs."

The Admiral wouldn't look Stan in the eye. "Is he in pain?"

"He's on a vent, so he's heavily sedated, Sir." Stan thought about it and decided to lay it out. "I don't know what kind of relationship you have with your son, Admiral McGee, but he's a good man and he's got a long, difficult recovery ahead of him."

"I know he's a good man, I've never had any indication otherwise." Ben sighed as he leaned his arms against the table. "Other than that, I know nothing about him."

"He's your son."

"Timothy was just sixteen when he left for college. We haven't been in the same place for more than forty-eight hours since then."

Stan felt like he was in over his head, but he couldn't keep the question from popping out. "How was that possible, didn't he come home for summer vacations?"

"Of course, but I would be at sea."

Vale's return stopped Stan from reminding the Admiral that thousands of fathers in the Navy had managed to balance duty and family just fine. "You found something?"

"Oh, yeah." Terry Vale couldn't help the grin that crossed his face. "Less than thirty seconds after Yeoman Hayes' call to Mrs. McGee was terminated, a call from the same extension went to Harper Dearing's burn phone. We got him, I assume you'd like to do the interrogation?"

"Damn straight." Standing, Burley followed Vale out the door, leaving the Admiral alone with his thoughts.

-NCIS-

"Oh, Timmy."

Jack parked the wheelchair in front of the large window into McGee's ICU room next to Penny. It wasn't until Abby reached out and took the older woman's hand that she was even aware of their arrival.

"Abby, Jack..." Penny's voice trailed off as she returned her attention to the activity around her grandson's bed. Jack stepped to Penny's other side and wrapped a comforting arm around her waist.

"What happened?"

"I don't know. They put the chest tube in this morning because he seemed stronger, but while I was sitting with him, all sorts of alarms started going off. They've been working on him ever since."

Another twenty minutes passed before Dr. Morgan came out to talk to Penny. "The crisis has passed and he's as stable as we can expect this early in his recovery."

"Exactly what went wrong? Was the chest tube incorrectly placed this morning?"

Dr. Morgan sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "The tube we inserted this morning is fine and is still helping to keep that lung from collapsing. The chest tube that was placed while he was in the emergency room to drain the excess blood has shifted due to swelling. That caused it to buckle and puncture the pericardial sac."

Penny's knuckles were almost as white as Abby's as they clung to each other. "But he's going to be all right?"

"Ms. Langston, if you're asking me if your grandson will survive, it's still too early to know for sure." He held his hand up before either of the two women could speak. "That being said, he's obviously fighting to stay with us and we're going to keep doing everything possible to help him with this fight."

A nurse arrived with the latest blood tests and Morgan stopped talking long enough to read the results and order several changes before explaining the latest development. "His oxygen saturation levels are decreasing, which we expected to happen. Lung injuries like his take time to fully develop. With any luck they'll bottom out soon and then start to climb back up. It's going to be a long couple of days, you should try to get some rest."


	24. Chapter 24

Knowing that he wouldn't get through to the Admiral on a personal level right now, Stan focused on the case. "What can you tell me about your Yeoman, Sir?"

"Yeoman Hayes has been a satisfactory worker, he's been assigned to me about four years now."

"Do you know anything about his family, who his friends are on the base? How about what he does in his spare time?"

"Of course not, he's enlisted."

"Unbelievable."

-NCIS-

After a few words from Penny, Abby found herself sitting at McGee's bedside. Carefully she snaked her hand through the tubes and wires to wrap her fingers around his cool hand. "Hey, McGee, the rest of us are getting better. Now we just need to have you show those doctors how strong you really are. Gibbs told you that you couldn't leave us, remember? You've never disobeyed an order yet, don't start now, Timmy."

There was no response, so Abby continued to talk, telling him about the Sister's plans for a bowling tournament to raise funds for one of their charities. Eventually, one of the nurses came in with an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, we need to run some more tests."

"Yeah, okay." Abby wiped her eyes with her free hand. "You'll take good care of him?"

"Absolutely."

"Because, there's a lot of people that need him to get better." Abby let go of his hand, but his fingers remained tightly wrapped around hers. "Tim? McGee, can you hear me?"

Both the nurse and Penny moved closer. While the nurse checked his vitals, Penny leaned over Abby's shoulder to touch the side of his face. "Timmy, sweetheart? It's Penny, can you hear me? You're going to be just fine, I promise."

The nurse injected a sedative into the IV and they watched his grip loosen. "I'm sorry, I know you want him to wake up, but he's too weak to risk letting him wake up enough to fight the vent."

-NCIS-

Stan entered the brig, carefully stepping past the recording equipment before joining Vale. The table wasn't bolted down, but the two beefy MP's at each side of the small room kept Hayes from trying anything. After he sat down, Stan took a moment to look at the man. Thin, with a pasty complexion, he didn't look like someone that had a chance of rising through the ranks. In fact, Stan was surprised that he could even pass the minimum PT requirements. He shook his head.

"Why?"

Hayes didn't even pretend to not understand the question. "I didn't join the Navy to spend my life bringing an Admiral his coffee."

"So, you joined to become a terrorist?" Stan leaned back, crossing his arms across his chest. "What? Too hot in the Middle East for you? Didn't want to give up eating pork?"

Vale smirked as he looked Hayes up and down. "Nah, I bet he wasn't man enough to handle the seventy-two virgins."

The insults obviously got to Hayes, as his face turned red. He fidgeted in his chair, causing the MP's to step even closer. "No, I just wanted the money, then it got out of hand."

"Out of hand? He blew up Navy vessels. He blew up the Navy Yard. He blew up the FBI team trying to take him into custody. Tell that to the families that are making funeral arrangements. Do you have any idea how many deaths you're responsible for?" By the time Stan wound down, he was standing over Hayes as the broken man sat hunched over.

"He treated me like I was somebody important to him. I've slaved for the almighty McGee for four years. I don't think he even knows my first name."

-NCIS-

"Tell us, Director Vance, exactly how did this Harper Dearing manage to get a bomb past security and onto the Navy Yard?"

Vance sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. The shrill voiced Representative from Minnesota had already been grilling him for over thirty minutes, coming just short of accusing the Navy of fabricating the charges just to cover what she claimed was Naval incompetence. "I was kidnapped coming home from a NATO conference. My car was found abandoned. Under the circumstances, the focus was on finding my location, not disassembling my vehicle."

"Obviously you survived your... ordeal."

"I regained consciousness in a sarcophagus next to a dead body." Inwardly Vance was pleased to see her shudder at his words. "Dearing knew enough about standard protocol to know how to set up the reaction he wanted and how to cause the most damage and the highest number of casualties."

"Just what proof do you have against Mr. Dearing? You are aware that the man is a respected member of the business community?"

Vance glanced over at Jarvis as the SecNav interrupted to answer the Representative from Dearing's home state. "I assure you, sir, the evidence is overwhelming."

When the SecNav's words didn't seem to have an effect, Vance continued. "Harper Dearing has been in contact with members of our agency and a member of the DOD, bragging about his plans. He is determined to do as much damage as possible to the Navy and to NCIS."

The committee chairman was just as determined to keep the meeting on track. "Mr. Dearing claimed that his son's death was caused by faulty materials on his ship, is that correct?"

"Evan Dearing was one of the sailors killed by a terrorist bomb aboard the USS Brandywine. Part of the reason the bombing caused so much damage was some faulty steel used in the ship's construction." Jarvis hated having to justify the decision made by his predecessor. "The Brandywine was scheduled for repairs to replace the defective section after it finished that tour. As much as the Navy may have wanted to, it wasn't feasible to pull every ship affected."

"The defective materials weren't public knowledge?"

"No, Mr. Chairman, but Dearing used his connections to get an non-redacted copy of the report."

"I see. That doesn't tell us how Mr. Dearing discovered the faulty wiring, does it?"

This time it was Vance that answered. "No, it doesn't, especially since the discovery was classified."

"Then how did his discover it?"

"We don't know."

-NCIS-

"I need my phone."

"Why?" Jack had a suspicion who Abby wanted to call, but he hoped he was wrong.

Back in the waiting room, Abby looked at Jack before glancing over at Penny. "Has Ducky been here yet?"

"No, I haven't seen him, Abby." She looked over at the other person in their small group. "Jack?"

"This probably isn't the best time..."

Abby crossed her arms as she shook her head. "I know Ducky's got to be busy, but he needs to be here with us, getting answers."

Jack realized that this was one conversation that couldn't be avoided any longer. "Let's talk about it upstairs. I think Leroy will want to be part of this."

The two women looked at each other, both realizing that something was very wrong. True to his word, Jack didn't say anything until he pushed Abby's wheelchair back into the hospital room where Gibbs was waiting.

Gibbs turned off the television news the moment he saw the expression on Abby's face and Penny's behind her. "What's wrong? Has something happened to McGee?"

Jack gave his son an apologetic look. "Sorry, Leroy, but they were both asking about Ducky. Figured it would be better to discuss it up here."

"Was Ducky killed in the explosion?"

Confused, Abby shook her head before either Gibbs or his father could say anything to Penny. "No, Ducky was down in Florida for Jimmy's wedding. We were all supposed to be in Florida."

"But something did happen to him?"

Abby was close enough to Gibbs for him to take her hand so Jack reached out for Penny as the younger man broke the news.

"When he heard what happened, Ducky had a heart attack."

"No, Gibbs, no." Abby teared up and Gibbs pulled her closer.

"He's going to be okay, Abs."

"He was supposed to be safe, Gibbs. He and Jimmy were supposed to be safe." She raised up, barely missing Gibbs' chin with the top of her head. "Jimmy? What about Jimmy?"

"Palmer's okay. He took care of Ducky and then he flew back up here to handle the bodies just the way Ducky would want."

"Jimmy's here?"

Gibbs pointed to the stuffed animal on the other bed. "He brought you that last night."

"Is Ducky going to be all right?" It was the first time Penny had spoken since she'd heard and Jack tightened his arm around her waist.

"He's going to be just fine."

-NCIS-

After everything that had happened, it seemed surreal to be parking in his normal spot, but Jimmy Palmer was a creature of habit, even locking the door before walking around the damaged cars still left in the lot. Vance was standing outside what had been the main entrance, staring at the mangled remains of his SUV.

"Good afternoon, Director."

"Palmer, have you gotten any rest?"

Jimmy looked past the fresh suit to see the exhaustion etched on the other man's face. "Probably more than you, but the FBI lab has DNA tests running on the bodies we weren't able to identify any other way."

Closing his eyes for a moment at that reminder, Vance nodded as he spoke. "That's good, Mr. Palmer. I've spoken to all the families involved and they're anxious for closure."

"Yes, Sir. As soon as I make sure the chain of evidence is maintained as Autopsy is emptied out, I'll be meeting with the families that we need samples from." Both of the chores were going to be unpleasant, but for different reasons. The four bodies currently in Autopsy had been without refrigeration since the explosion and no one knew how badly they had been compromised. The Medical Examiner from the FBI had offered to add those bodies to his already overwhelming workload.

There was little else to be said and the two men fell silent until a Naval officer from the nearest Naval Construction Unit joined them, handing each a hard hat. The Seebees had been working to shore up the building since the bomb techs had given the all-clear. "We're ready if you are, Sir."

"Thank you, Lieutenant Simmons." This early in the building assessment and repairs process, no one would be allowed in unescorted. A group of Navy personnel guided Vance and Palmer through the building. Palmer had been through most of it already, but the light of day made the devastation all the more apparent.

The group silently moved down the back stairs, switching on their flashlights as they reached the bottom of the stairs. At this level, only a thick layer of dust told that anything was wrong. Power was out, but there was enough manpower to force the doors open easily. The faint smell of decomp caused several of the young sailors to blanch, but they didn't complain as Palmer signed off on each body and they were loaded up and moved out.

Autopsy empty, Palmer took one last look around and Vance laid a hand on his shoulder. "We'll be back here eventually."

"I know." Jimmy picked up Ducky's tea pot from the desk. "Dr. Mallard will want this in the meantime."

"Of course." Taking one last look around, the two men walked out into the hall. Palmer followed the men carrying the bodies while Vance and the Lieutenant continued up to the top floor. Pamela was waiting for him, wearing a hard hat and holding a stack of boxes, ready to be assembled. Top secret files were unloaded from the locked cabinets and carefully stacked in the boxes. Once the last box was filled, Vance walked around his office. The reinforced walls required by the Secure Compartmented Information Facility status of his office limited the damage, but the shock wave had knocked several pictures off the desk. Silently, Vance picked up one of the frames, shaking the broken glass away from the image. The smiling faces of his family stared back at him.

"Are you ready, Director?"

Feeling his knees creak, Vance stood and turned toward her. "Yeah, I'm ready."


	25. Chapter 25

**a/n - Been a rough week, as my faithful companion of 14 years crossed the rainbow bridge.**

**I do have the rest of this story roughed out, it's a long one. Between working 68 hours a week and making the decision to sell my house, I've got limited time to write and polish. Keep your fingers crossed that my home sells quickly so I can quit the second job and get back to writing.**

* * *

"Hey, Dad, did you get something to eat?"

Anthony smiled as he sat next to his son's bed. "Yes, I did. In fact, I ate with Nancy, Nancy Dorneget."

"Ned's mom? Is he okay?"

"He's got some pretty bad burns and a broken leg."

"Damn it." It seemed like every day gave them more bad news. Distracted by the news, Tony almost missed it. "Wait a minute, you're on first name basis with Dorny's mom?

Senior shifted in his chair, not quite looking Tony in the eye. "Well, we're the only two single parents staying at the Navy Yard – figured she could use a shoulder."

"It's just a shoulder, right Dad?"

"We're both adults, Junior."

-NCIS-

Penny returned downstairs for another visit with Tim, carefully watching for any signs of awareness. He seemed to still be heavily sedated, but she talked to him anyway. Eventually, a nurse came in to run the next round of tests, forcing her to take a break. Jack was waiting for her.

"You mad that I didn't tell you about Ducky?"

She dropped into the nearest chair, rubbing her trembling hands over her face. "I don't think I have the energy to be mad right now, but you should have told me."

Jack sat next to her and laid a hand on her arm. "You had enough on your plate, needed to focus on Tim. Ducky would be the first one to tell you that."

Over the years Penny had heard enough about her grandson's teammates' family that she really already knew the answer. "It's going to be up to us to take care of them, isn't it?"

Jack may have seen Anthony DiNozzo, but he'd heard enough about the man to know not to depend on him too much. "Yep, pretty much. That house of Jethro's is going to get mighty snug for all of us, but we'll manage. Hopefully, a few of the kids will be up to tackling the stairs or he's going to need more sofas."

"Maybe there's another option." Penny pulled out her phone and started scrolling. Her condo was too small and too far away, but she knew someone that could help.

-NCIS-

"Looking pretty good, Agent DiNozzo. How'd you like to get out of bed for a little while?"

Tony grinned at the man, instantly forgiving him for shining the bright light in his eyes. "Great, I want to check on some of our teammates."

"Not so fast. You can sit in the chair and walk to the bathroom for now. We'll check you again in a few hours, see how you're tolerating that." He turned and pointed a finger at Ziva. "Not yet, young lady. You're staying put for another day"

Ziva pouted with her arms crossed over her chest, the black splint contrasting against the pale hospital gown. "I feel fine."

"From someone who didn't complain before she had a seizure? I'm not impressed."

"He's got you there, Ziva." Tony smirked as the doctor left.

The Israeli was not happy. "We need to be out there hunting that monster, not laying around the hospital."

"No, what we need to do is to recover enough that we can take him down ourselves. We'll get him, Ziva. Gibbs won't stop until Dearing is either in shackles or dead."

"Dead works for me."

"Yeah, me too."

-NCIS-

"No." Arms crossed and pigtails replaced, Abby looked like a petulant five-year-old. "I can't just go home when everyone else is still here. You can't make me."

Gibbs sighed, he was much more used to dealing with DiNozzo, who couldn't wait to get out of the hospital. Before he could come up with a reason that would convince the young Goth, his father stepped into the room.

"Now, Miss Abby, It'll be okay. Besides, we're gonna need you ready to help us when the rest can come home."

"We'll all be together?"

Jack grinned at the hopeful look on her face. "Yep, Penny managed to borrow a house big enough for all of us, even Tim, when he's ready."

"Okay." Now happy, Abby bounced into the bathroom to get dressed and Gibbs gave his father a careful look. Jack shrugged as he explained.

"I figured we'd cram everybody into your place, but Penny was worried about the stairs and Jackie was worried that Dearing knew where you lived. You don't mind, do you? I think it'll help everyone with this. It meant the world to Abby to see McGee, even just for a minute."

Actually, knowing that his kids would be together under the same roof while they recovered loosened a knot he didn't even know was in his chest. "Nah, it's good. It's real good."

"Then it's settled. You and I will have to double up, or I could share a room with Penny." Jack blissfully ignored the glare as he continued. "There's even a workshop behind the garage. I'll bring you something to sand."

-NCIS-

Hesitant footsteps woke Gibbs from a light doze and his eyes instantly snapped open. It was a woman, just not the woman he was expecting. "Rachael."

"Hello, Gibbs." She circled around the bed to sit in the chair, checking out the room. "How are you? Where's Sam?"

"She's in hiding, Dearing bribed a judge to get her ex-husband out of prison."

"Oh, I'd be in hiding, too."

Gibbs didn't like the look on her face. "What do you know about him?"

"She calls him a monster."

"Yeah?"

Rachael stared at the wall over his shoulder, eventually shaking her head. "Who was worse, Gibbs, Frankenstein or the doctor that created him?"

"You're saying..."

"It was going to be a nasty divorce. He wanted joint custody. She didn't want to share, so she decided to make him look unstable."

Gibbs started putting the pieces together. "He was one of her first test subjects; she drugged him."

"I can't prove it, but yes."

"Her plan backfired."

"Big time." Rachael felt guilty, but at the same time it was a relief to admit what she'd suspected all these years. "Liam had put his career on hold when Parker was born, he was the one to cut back his hours, turn down a promotion that would have taken him away from home more. She was facing a real possibility of not only losing her son, but paying child support and alimony and Sam doesn't like to lose. Instead of becoming unstable like she planned, he snapped – became psychotic."

"And admitting that would have destroyed her career."

"Exactly."

"No wonder she panicked when he got out of prison."

-NCIS-

When the okay to leave his room came, Tony didn't have to think about his first destination. After hearing so many second-hand reports, he wanted to see his Probie for himself. The nurse wasn't so sure about allowing him to walk that far and stopped him in the hallway.

"Sir, perhaps it would be better if you just took a walk around the unit."

Tony was determined. "No, my best friend is still in the ICU. I want to see him."

"We really can't let you leave this floor unaccompanied."

"He won't be alone." A warm hand rested on Tony's shoulder.

"Hey, Dad."

"Hey, Junior, where you off to?"

Tony was never so grateful to see his father. "I want to go downstairs to see Tim. He's still in Intensive Care."

"All right, I'll go with you."

Faced with that winning smile in stereo, she just shook her head. "Take it slow, rest if you need to. If you get too tired, call, and we'll send someone down with a wheelchair."

-NCIS-

"Wow, you must have pulled some serious strings."

Penny smiled at Abby's reaction as they pulled into the driveway. Her dear friends spent half the year in Europe, but maintained a home in DC large enough for their extended family to visit for the holidays. "They're old friends. Here, I thought this room would work for you." She opened the door that obviously housed one of her friends' teen granddaughters. Bright colors contrasted with black while multiple posters of various bands covered the walls.

"This is perfect." Abby was tired, but poked around the room. The closet was empty and the attached bathroom connected it to a second bedroom.

"Ziva can stay in this room when she's released." Penny stepped through the door into the pale pink and lavender room. The canopied bed was covered with stuffed animals and a collection of dolls filled the high shelves. Behind her, Abby's lips twitched.

"She'll love it, I'm sure."

Secretly, Penny was just as amused. "Yes, well, you get some rest. Jack will get you up for food in a few hours."

"Are you going back to the hospital?"

"I will as soon as I shower, is there something I can get you before I go?

"No, just..." Abby's face twisted with the grief she refused to show. "If something happens..."

"Of course, I'll keep you posted on everyone's improvement." Penny refused to consider that any other change might occur to her grandson or any of the other victims.

-NCIS-

Both men were silent by the time they reached the ICU. Anthony was intently watching his son, seeing signs of how much of a strain this journey was while Tony was becoming more and more nervous about how he'd find his friend. The nurses were expecting the visitors and they were allowed right in.

"Ah, damn, Probie." Staring at his friend, Tony was only vaguely aware of his dad pushing him into a chair. "You're supposed to stay safe, not play the hero."

Behind him, Anthony struggled to control his breathing as to not alarm his son. Other than the edge of a bruise that peeked out of his hairline, Tony had come through the experience relatively unmarked. Seeing the young man in the bed was a stark reminder of how bad it had really been and how easily it could have been Tony laying there, clinging to life.

A nurse came in quietly to check the readings on the various machines and Tony gave her a hopeful look. "How soon before he starts doing better?"

"His oxygen levels have stabilized, that's a very good sign."

Looking at the low number she was recording, Tony wasn't sure he wanted to know how bad it had gotten for his friend. Once she left, he leaned closer. "Hey, Buddy, we need you to wake up and see the pretty nurses they've got taking care of you. Maybe not as pretty as the ones I've got upstairs, but I've got a reputation here so I always get the prettiest nurses – but I'll share as soon as you open your eyes, okay? We need you, Tim. We need you to pull through and get better so the team will be together when Dearing goes down."

Tony rambled on for a few more minutes before falling silent, just watching the still figure in the bed. Forgetting all about his father being in the room with him, he jumped when a hand touched his shoulder.

"Time to go, Junior."

Past his father, he could see a technician standing in the hallway with an ultrasound machine, obviously waiting to run more tests on McGee. "Yeah, okay." Standing, he leaned close to whisper in Tim's ear. "I know the Boss ordered you not to die, and I'm counting on you to follow that, all right? You've never let us down, Buddy, don't start now."

Apparently, while he'd been sitting with McGee, his father had been busy, as a wheelchair was waiting for him. Tony was tired enough and discouraged enough to not argue before climbing in. He didn't say anything else until Anthony wheeled him into the elevator and reached for the button for the neurology floor.

"No." Tony tugged at his dad's sleeve. "I want to see Gibbs, first." Before Anthony could mount an argument, Tony found the button for the floor he wanted and had the elevator moving. It bounced slightly and he shuddered.

"You okay, Junior?"

"Yeah, just not going to like elevators for a while."

Gibbs appeared to be dozing when they arrived, but the bright blue eyes opened as they hesitated in the doorway. "Hey, DiNozzo, looking better."

"Hey, Boss, you too." Tony fussed with the sleeve of his robe as his father rolled him closer. "I... umm, saw McGee. They say he's doing okay, but..."

"I know, Tony. Watching him in the ambulance... thought I saw him take his last breath." Gibbs gave Tony a grim smile as he reached out and tapped his knee. "He's fighting with everything he's got to stay with us, so we need to have faith in him."

Tony remembered back to a day in a far away desert that seemed a life time ago. "Heart of a lion."

"Yeah."


	26. Chapter 26

**a/n - Starting to pick up the pace as the rough draft is done. More changes in my life, so keep your fingers crossed that my home sells quickly and for a decent price. When that happens, no more second job! BTW, if you haven't read it, check out Tigyr's_ Loss of a Friend_, which she wrote for me.**

* * *

When it was obvious that Tony was tiring, Anthony stepped in. "Maybe it would be a good idea for you to go back to your room and get some rest, Junior."

Gibbs nodded in agreement and Tony knew he'd never win the argument. "Yeah, okay. Boss, have you heard from Ducky? I kinda expected him back before now."

Tony was an expert in reading Gibbs' silent comments and knew instantly that something was wrong. When Gibbs continued to hesitate, Tony pushed. "Boss, what's going on?"

Scrubbing at his head, Gibbs knew he had no choice but to tell him. "Ducky had a heart attack."

"What?"

"When he heard about the bombing, Ducky had a heart attack, but he's going to be all right. Palmer got to him right away and he'll be back on his feet before all of us."

Tony shook his head. "Boss, I've seen McGee. Saying that Ducky will recover first isn't all that encouraging."

Gibbs tilted his head in acknowledgment. "Nobody said it was going to be easy, DiNozzo, but our entire team survived. That's a miracle in itself."

"So far, you mean. Probie's not out of the woods yet."

"He's tough, he'll make it."

-NCIS-

Breena stood nervously as Ducky's cardiologist studied his latest EKG. Finally, she couldn't take it any longer. "Well?"

"If Dr. Mallard continues to show improvement like this, we should be able to more him out of the critical care unit in another day or two."

"And then what happens?" It felt like pulling teeth to get detailed answers out of any of the staff.

"Then we'll monitor him for a few more days before transferring him to a rehab facility."

Finally some progress, and Breena jumped on it. "Can he be flown back to DC at that point? I'm sure he'd recover faster surrounded by his friends."

"Putting him on a commercial flight? Oh, I don't think that would..."

"What about a private flight, a medical flight?" She waited while he mulled it over.

"I suppose that would be possible."

Breena didn't wait for any downsides the doctor could come up with. "Wonderful, I'll start making arrangements."

-NCIS-

Tony was obviously exhausted and troubled when he returned to their room, so Ziva remained silent and pretended to be already asleep as she covertly watched him climb into bed. His father tucked the blankets around his shoulders and kissed his head in a surprisingly loving gesture before slipping out the door.

Ziva continued to watch him, and when Tony's eyes opened back up to stare at the ceiling, she had to know. "Tell me."

He rolled over to face her, struggling to find the words. "Probie... he... I've never seen anyone that badly injured that survived, Ziva."

"Then he will be the first, yes?"

Her confidence made him smile. "I hope so."

The smile only lasted a moment before the haunted expression returned. When he didn't tell her any more, she pushed again. "Tell me the rest. McGee's doctors are not giving up, are they?"

"No, no, he's got a great team of doctors working on him and some great nurses – pretty, too." The exaggerated waggle of his eyebrows didn't detract from the worry in his eyes.

"What is it? I can tell, you are hiding something. Has something else happened?"

She could always get him to confess when his guard was down. "It's Ducky, he had a heart attack."

"No."

Tony continued on as if he hadn't heard her objection. "Gibbs said he's doing okay, but it just sucks. It just really, really sucks."

Ziva had a hundred questions, but the arrival of their doctor stopped the conversation.

-NCIS-

On a different floor, Dr. Brad Pitt was listening to a pair of Marine lungs, observing the crackles and wheezing in between the rants as Gibbs argued to be released.

"I'm fine, let me go home. Let me take care of my family."

Pitt shook his head as he sat on the edge of the bed. "Gunny, you're better, but a long ways from fine. Let's give it a couple more days."

"Days?" Unfortunately, Pitt was becoming immune to the look.

"Let's focus on the positives. You're getting better. Your team is getting better. I think DiNozzo's going to be released in the morning."

Gibbs did relax at that news, but it gave him a new worry. "I'm not sure he'll take time to recover once he's out of here."

Dr. Pitt gave a snort as he shook his head. "The apple didn't fall far from the tree, did it?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Gibbs looked offended, but there was a twinkle in his eyes.

-NCIS-

A shower and a fresh change of clothes made a world of difference, but Penny was still looking forward to sleeping in a real bed after she had one more visit with her grandson. She pulled the chair closer to the bed and took his hand. It seemed a little warmer than it had earlier and his color was improved, she thought.

"Hello, Sweetheart, you look better tonight. Did you enjoy the visits with your friends? I'm sure it made you feel better to know that they're all here waiting for you to recover. It's late and they won't let me stay too long tonight, but I'll be back in the morning. You just concentrate on getting stronger so that you can wake up and breathe on your own. Will you do that for me, Sweetie?"

-NCIS-

"Morning, Dad." Tony's smile widened when he saw the bakery box in his father's hand. "Is that..."

"Yep, at least as close as I could get around here." Senior pulled out a layered pastry, soaked in a caramel syrup.

"You remembered." Tony reverently took the offered treat, recalling the Sunday mornings he and his father would sneak out to a bakery near their home – back in the days before his mother became ill. A nurse stepped in behind Anthony, setting down a tray of drinks and smiling at him before stepping back.

"Thank you, my dear." Anthony kissed the blushing woman's cheek before she left the room. As Tony laughed and shook his head at his father's antics, Senior set a cup on Tony's bedside table. He then delivered a treat and a second cup to a smiling Ziva.

"Thank you, Anthony." She took a sip and smiled even wider. "Mmm, hot chocolate."

-NCIS-

"Good morning, Director."

"Good morning, Pam." Vance looked around the new, temporary home of NCIS. Near their beloved historic brick building, this cinder block building seemed cold and uninviting. Assorted desks, scavenged from various storage rooms throughout the Yard filled the new bullpen The Director's office was currently in the far corner, separated only by an extra tall set of cubicle walls. Down in the basement, workers were still putting in the security measures necessary for MTAC and Vance's long-term office. "Not exactly home, is it?"

"No, Sir." She followed him around the cubicle wall to see the reports already stacked up and waiting for him on the desk. "But some things never change."

-NCIS-

"Are you really being released today, Junior?"

Tony was anxious to get out of the hospital and start doing something, anything, to help the agency recover and hunt down Harper Dearing. "Yeah, can't wait to get back to work."

"I thought the FBI had taken over the case?"

"Yeah, but I want to be there when they put the handcuffs on him."

"Or a bullet between his eyes." Ziva's comment made Anthony's eyes widen and Tony chuckle.

"Either way, one of us needs to be there." As thrilled as Tony was that his father had dropped everything to come, he wasn't comfortable having the older man underfoot too long. "What about you, got a new business deal cooking?"

Anthony shrugged, not looking his son in the eye. "Nancy's asked me to help her sell the family business."

"Dad..." Tony had never met Ned's mother, but alarm bells were going off in his head.

"It's just a favor for a friend, Junior. You worry too much."

Now that his father was looking at him, Tony gave him a hard look. "Don't give me a reason to worry, Dad. Ned's a friend and someone I work with. How long has his mother been thinking about this?"

"Not long." Anthony held up his hand to stop Tony from commenting. "That's why I think it's important that someone else oversee the sale. She's making decisions down here instead of up here." He tapped his chest, then his head.

"And what do you get out of it?" For all the improvement in their relationship, the trust was still shaky.

"Just a small percentage of the sale price, Junior, barely enough to cover my travel expenses."

Tony stared at his father for a long time before nodding slowly, still not totally convinced.

-NCIS-

Of all the phone calls that she'd made the last few days, this one probably brought Jackie the most joy. "All right, Breena, it's all set up. A Navy medical transport will bring Dr. Mallard and you back to Washington as soon as his doctor gives the okay. The top cardiologist at Bethesda will be taking over his case as soon as he arrives."

_~That's wonderful. Ducky will feel much better when he's close enough to see some of the team.~_

"And you'll feel better being back with your husband."

_~That, too. I'm worried about how hard this has been on Jimmy.~_

Jackie had talked long into the night with Leon about many things, Jimmy included. "I'm sure it has been, but Leon is so proud of the way he's stepped up during the crisis. Even Secretary Jarvis has noticed how important your husband has become to the Agency."

_~I'm glad. Everyone there means so much to him and he knows how important the work is.~ _

"Good, because he has a long career ahead of him here. Now, what can I do to help you with your return?"

-NCIS-

"Hello, Jethro, you're looking better."

Gibbs tossed aside the paper he was reading. "Ms. Langston, how is Tim this morning?"

"He had a good night, at least that's what they tell me. His color is better and his blood pressure is stable. I'd like to believe that on some level, he was aware of his visitors, yesterday. And, it's Penny, Jethro, we're practically family after all."

"So I've heard. Speaking of which, where's my father this morning?"

"Listening to Tony's post-hospital care and restrictions. He and I will be tag-teaming the kids until everybody's home and back on their feet."

Gibbs had to snort at that image. "I hope he's taking notes. DiNozzo's notorious for blowing off what the doctors tell him."

"Don't worry, Abby already has a plan to keep him in line."

-NCIS-

"All right, Agent DiNozzo, you're free to go. Behave yourself, we don't want to see you as a patient here for a long time."

Tony happily swung into the provided wheelchair. "All right, let's get a move on. Thank you ladies for your excellent care." After smiling at the nurses, his smile faltered when he looked at Ziva. She shook her head, determined to not let him feel guilty.

"I will be fine, Tony."

"Sure she will, and she'll be home with us before you know it." Jack picked up Tony's bag while the senior DiNozzo took the controls of the wheelchair.

"All right, Junior, you ready to get this show on the road?"

"Forward, my trusty steed."

"I'm beginning to understand Gibbs and his head slaps, Junior."

-NCIS-

"It wouldn't have killed me to go see Gibbs and McGee before we left." Tony tried the stare, but Penny and Jack were just as immune as Gibbs, while his father just looked amused.

"Don't look at me, Junior, I'm not driving the car."

"No, but you were driving the chair."

"Yes, and I heard the doctor tell you straight home and rest today. You'll see them soon." Anthony looked up as they pulled into a driveway. A dark haired figure was standing at the window, obviously waiting. "Besides, somebody is waiting for you."

"Tony." Abby was at the door when Tony climbed out of the car, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm so glad you're here."

"Thanks, Abs."

She didn't let go of him as they walked into the house together. The three caretakers just stayed out of the way as she pulled him down onto the couch and snuggled up against Tony, telling him about her day – the long talk with her brother, Luca, who wanted her to come home for a visit, but that she was determined to stay with her DC family until they were all recovered. By the time Penny had tea made, Tony and Abby were both asleep on the sofa, leaning against each other. Mission accomplished, blankets were draped over the two sleeping figures and Jack, Penny and Anthony retreated to the kitchen to start dinner.


	27. Chapter 27

Ziva was very happy that Tony was well enough to leave the hospital, she really was, but the room was so quiet now. Staring at the empty bed as the early morning light filtered into the room, she thought about what had brought them to this point. Years of living in America and working at NCIS hadn't blunted her burning desire for vengeance. Harper Dearing wasn't a common criminal, he was a vile creature that had hurt her family in an unforgivable manner. Lost in thought, she almost didn't hear the phone in her room.

"Hello?"

_~Ziva? My darling daughter, it is so good to hear your voice.~_

Her father sounded stressed, almost worried. "Papa?"

_~Jackie Vance has been keeping me updated, but I needed to hear your voice with my own ears to know that you will truly be all right.~ _

Despite her training and determination, Ziva could feel her throat tightening up. "I... I will Abba, as soon as I know my team will recover." If her father was surprised by her feelings, he didn't show it.

_~I understand that Agent Gibbs is still hospitalized.~_

"Yes, and McGee. I have seen Gibbs and he should recover, but they are making no promises about McGee. He is still very critical."

_~I am truly sorry for that, he is a good man. I enjoyed our talks together when I was in DC.~_

"He was the first person to accept me when I came here." Over the phone she could hear other voices as someone informed the Mossad Director of a meeting. "They're waiting for you, I understand."

_~Unfortunately, the world waits for no one, my daughter.~ _There was a pause, then Eli's voice became more intense._ ~Sometimes, American justice can be... convoluted. Remember, I can have a team in place quickly if needed.~_

It was something she would have expected of Gibbs, not of her own father and Ziva felt herself becoming more emotional. "Todah, Abba."

When the phone call ended, Ziva struggled to reign in her fears, forcing her anger to come to the forefront. That had always given her strength. Wiping the moisture from her eyes, she decided that she was done being passive. It took a moment, but she found the release to drop the bed rail herself instead of calling for a nurse. As she carefully climbed out of the bed, a voice from the doorway stopped her in her tracks.

"Just where do you think you're going?"

Ziva froze and looked over her shoulder. The neurologist was standing in the doorway, arms crossed, his broad shoulders blocking the door. "Umm, the bathroom."

Stepping inside the room, Dr. Lewis held the stern expression for a moment longer before breaking out in a grin. A nurse was behind him with a wheelchair. "Well, hurry up so you can visit your friends before rounds start."

Feeling lighter than she had since the beginning of the evacuation, Ziva scurried to do as she was told.

-NCIS-

Restless and unable to go back to sleep, Gibbs beat his pillow into submission before shoving it behind his head again. Just as he was ready to throw the lumpy thing across the room, the door swung open.

"You abusing the bedding, Gibbs?"

"Needs it, I had a better pillow at boot camp."

"I'll pass your observation on to the administrator." Dr. Pitt smirked as he came into the room, followed by a nurse pushing a wheelchair. "You know, it's a good thing I like you and your people."

-NCIS-

"So, that's him?" Jarvis stood next to Vance as the two of them looked through the reinforced glass that separated observation from the FBI interrogation room.

Vance was furious at the man that Fornell was questioning."Yeah, traded the safety of the Navy to Dearing for five grand."

Slipping through the door just in time to hear Vance's comment, Stan had his own to add. "That and a chance to stick it to Admiral McGee."

"Any way we can track Dearing down through Hayes?" Vance looked back over at the Yeoman, who was slumped in a chair. It was a question Stan and Fornell had been trying to answer since Burley had arrived with his prisoner late last night.

"Nope, Dearing burns the bridge as soon as he gets what he wants. Hayes is a dead end. Fornell will keep him in custody, he might be able to testify, but that's about it. We're going to need another way to track Dearing." Stan looked over as Fornell left Hayes to join then "Any more progress on the files that McGee had?"

Fornell looked discouraged as he leaned against the wall. "Our cyber guys have been all over those files. If there's something else there, they're not seeing it. Any chance McGee's going to be able to step back in?"

"Probably would help if he were conscious." The droll comment was out before Vance could stop it. Since he was obviously on a roll, he turned to the SecNav. "Admiral McGee?"

"Not charged with anything yet. His wife has been taken to the hospital and apparently her condition is deteriorating, so I've granted him compassionate leave before he comes to DC to explain his actions. The man may not have been involved in Dearing's plot, but his command style has certainly be called into question."

"Maybe you can order him to care about his son while you're at it."

Fornell had a point, but orders could only go so far. "I can certainly order him to the hospital at least."

-NCIS-

Benjamin McGee tugged at his jacket as he stopped at the red light. It had been many years since he'd driven while wearing his dress whites, one of the perks of being an admiral with a yeoman at his disposal. However, now Hayes was in custody, charged as an accessory to a series of terrorist attacks against the Navy, NCIS and the FBI. Having to drive himself was the least of his problems, the political fall-out could quite possibly destroy his career. Managing one last tug at the tight collar, he started the car moving again as the light turned green and he turned towards the hospital and his wife.

Traffic was still light as Benjamin let his mind wander back to the phone call he'd had with Sarah.

_Sarah, let me talk to your mother please. A situation has come up._

_You mean the fact that my brother was in a building that blew up? The situation that you couldn't even be bothered to tell Mom about, yourself? The fact that he's in the hospital in such serious condition that Penny won't tell me details so I won't have to lie to Mom. You mean that situation?_

_Sarah... just let me talk to your mother. I'll explain everything to her._

_No can do, Daddy. Mom fell, broke her arm, split her head open. She's having her third MRI right now._

_Sarah..._

_Penny is at Bethesda with Tim, I'm here at this hospital with Mom and you need to decide if you're ready to start acting like a husband and father._

She'd hung up on him right after that. Despite his worry, Ben had to laugh. His little girl had her grandmother's spunk, he'd give her that. Right before his death, his own father had warned him about a similar subject; now it appeared to be time to pay the piper.

-NCIS-

Ziva had her hopes, but she didn't voice them until they arrived in the ICU unit. Gibbs was being wheeled in from the opposite direction. "Gibbs, we get to visit with McGee?"

"Looks that way, Ziva." Gibbs turned towards Brad for confirmation.

"Miss Langston is convinced that Tim's visits with Tony and Abby helped him and she's a very determined woman." Dr. Pitt wheeled Gibbs to one side of the bed while the nurse wheeled Ziva to the other.

Ziva was stunned by how frail her teammate looked. Tony had warned her, but it still wasn't enough. Gibbs, on the other hand, had seen him not only during his rescue and when his heart had stopped in the ambulance, but after his second surgery. "She's right, he is looking better."

While Ziva stared in shock, Gibbs leaned closer and threaded his hand through the tubes and wires to gently cup the side of his face, avoiding as many of the cuts and marks as he could. "You're doing great, son. I knew you had it in you."

Taking her lead from Gibbs, Ziva cautiously reached out and touched McGee's arm. He felt warm and alive, a striking contrast to his pale stillness. "We need you, McGee. Our family will not be whole again until you are awake and being annoyed by Tony."

They were allowed thirty minutes at McGee's bedside and they took turns talking to the young man, encouraging him and assuring themselves that he was truly on the mend.

-NCIS-

Vance arrived at the hospital, meeting up with Penny in the waiting room outside the ICU. "Ms Langston, how is Tim this morning?"

Smiling, she took his offered hand. "Better, I think. He seems stronger after every visit with his team. Agent Gibbs and Ziva are in with him now."

"That's good, that's really good. Your grandson is one of the rocks of the agency – a great number of people depend on him." Vance hesitated for a moment, then decided she had a right to know. "We've arrested a member of your son's staff, but he's been cleared off any personal involvement."

She sagged against one of the chairs. "Oh, thank heavens."

"I will warn you, the SecNav has some reservations about his command style."

"His command style?"

There was no easy way to describe what had happened. "Yeoman Hayes sold out his country to get back at Admiral McGee as much as for the money he was paid. That is a concern."

"Ben's standards are excruciatingly high for himself and for those in his command, Leon. He's not deliberately cruel. Where is he now?"

"With his wife in one hospital and his son in another, he's been granted compassionate leave by the SecNav. I believe he went up to see his wife."

Penny's knowledge was secondhand, but it was enough to give her an idea of how the mind of Clayton Jarvis worked. "Is this a test?"

Vance knew the SecNav was bothered by the fact that their critically injured agent had been ignored by his own father, almost as much as the fact that the Admiral had such a disconnect with the men and women under him. Officially or not, he was sure Jarvis would be watching Benjamin McGee's actions over the next few weeks. "I'm not sure."

Knowing that Gibbs' and David's visit would be ending soon, Vance slipped through the door and met up with them in the hall outside Tim's room, Ziva was very quiet, looking over her shoulder at her teammate, while Gibbs had a question for Vance.

"What do you know about Dunham?"

It took a minute to figure out who Gibbs was talking about. "Dunham? Liam Dunham, Samantha Ryan's ex-husband? Why?"

Gibbs quickly recapped his conversation with Rachael Cranston, watching as Vance's eyes widened. "He's an unknown player in all this, Leon, and I don't like not knowing."

"If he's smart, he'll be halfway across the country by now."

"Dearing doesn't do anything without a reason. He could have taken Ryan out of the game by going after Parker more than he did. Why bother bribing a judge to get Dunham out of prison?"

Vance had to admit Gibbs had a point. "What do you want to know about him?"

"What'd he do before he snapped? Who'd he met up with in prison? If we can figure out what he wants from Dunham..."

"We might figure out what his next move is. Okay, I'll look into it." Vance nodded and stepped back as the two agents were wheeled out of ICU. Alone, he entered the room, moving close enough to study the still figure. He'd been intrigued by McGee since the first he'd heard of him – that green agent, handpicked by Gibbs to complete his team.

Awkward, but brilliant, he'd been destined to a life behind a desk until Gibbs and DiNozzo started teaching him about the life of a field agent. Now with the combination of his degrees, his computer and technology skills and the street smarts he'd learned from them, McGee was destined to go far, possibly to sit in Vance's own chair some day. Of course at the moment, that chair was a folding chair surrounded by cubicle walls tossed aside by every other entity in the Yard, but Dearing would be captured and the Agency rebuilt.

Remembering when it had been him in that bed, Vance leaned close, cupping his hand over McGee's head as Gibbs had done for him months earlier. "Get well, son. We need you back with us."

-NCIS-

Harper Dearing stepped out of the shadows when an older Honda pulled into the parking lot of a shuttered factory just south of Baltimore. When the car stopped near him, he climbed in, not pulling off his hood until the car was moving again. "Do you have everything, Dunham?"

"New ID's, credit cards, phones, new disguise, everything you need." Liam Dunham pointed out a duffel bag on the back seat. "It's some of my best work, if I do say so myself."

While Dunham continued to drive, Dearing looked through the bag. Everything he'd asked for, and more. The detail of Dunham's work was top quality, right down to the aging of the fake ID. "Perfect."

"What are you going to do now?"

Dearing didn't answer right away as he put in the colored contacts, then the silicone pads that filled out his cheeks, changing the shape of his face. Staring at the small mirror on the visor, he worked his mouth until he was comfortable with the additions. The last touches were the plastic framed glasses, several years out of style and the thin dental veneers colored to approximate years of tobacco staining.

Satisfied, he fingered his most prized piece of false identification, his new employee ID for Bethesda Hospital. "Now to prepare for the final act."

Dunham wanted Dearing to get Gibbs out of the way before he tracked down Samantha and their son. "You're going to kill him?"

"No, that would be too easy. I know exactly how I'm going to get to Gibbs and when I'm done, the gun at his temple will be in his own hands."


	28. Chapter 28

After a hearty lunch fixed by Jack, Anthony drove Tony and Abby back to the hospital. Abby had a breathing treatment, along with Gibbs, so Tony went to see McGee first. Penny was leaving to get her own lunch and Tony was grateful. He couldn't quite explain how he didn't want company when he went to see his Probie. A nurse was in, changing his IV, when Tony walked in.

"Hi, how's he doing? Any change?"

"We're reducing his sedation levels."

Tony grinned as he looked down at his friend. "He's going to wake up soon?"

"Not quite yet. We'll be monitoring him as his sedation levels drop, see how he's doing. At the earliest, he won't be awake until tomorrow some time."

"Then what?"

"Then we see if his lungs are strong enough to be able to breath on his own."

"And if he's not?"

"We give him more sedation and try again in a few days." She gave an encouraging smile and left the room while Tony pulled the chair closer and sat down. He waited for her to close the door before talking to his friend.

"Hey, McSleepy, we need you to show them how strong you really are." Tony paused for a moment, taking in the pale face and the hissing of the ventilator before launching into a long and detailed account of Jack bossing Senior around in the kitchen and then all of them sitting around the table to eat.

"It was weird, man, watching him pour milk for Abby and me. For a minute I thought he was going to cut my food for me." Shifting closer, Tony lowered his voice as he confessed. "It's great that he came, that he cares, but I'm kinda looking forward to him leaving, so it's just us again, you know? I just want normal back, Buddy."

When Penny arrived back from her lunch Tony took his leave, not wanting to disturb her time with her grandson. Back out in the lobby, he saw his father escorting an older woman down the hall towards the cafeteria. She didn't look anything like the women his father usually associated with, so Tony knew immediately who she was. Changing his direction, Tony checked for the needed room number.

"Hey, Dorney." Unsure of his welcome, Tony stood in the doorway, looking carefully at the injured man. Dorneget was laying on his stomach, his back and leg heavily wrapped. The loopy smile told of his medication levels.

"Tony, how are you?"

"I'm okay, they let me go yesterday. What about you?" Tony eased himself into a chair, not pulling as close as he had when visiting his Probie.

"Mom's arranged for me to be transferred to a hospital closer to home." Ned paused, stumbling over his words. "Tony... your dad, he... I'm not trying to accuse, but it's my mom and I worry."

"Yeah, me too." Tony leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. "Charming women, for him it's just like breathing. He's not a bad guy, he's just... don't worry about it, man, I'll take care of it... somehow."

Realizing what a big promise he'd just made, Tony stood and tapped Dorneget's uninjured leg. "You take care of yourself and we'll see you when you get back here. Okay?"

The relief was obvious on Ned's face. "Yeah, I will and thanks, Tony. I like your dad, but she's my mom and I worry, you know?"

"Yeah, I know."

Tony stepped out into the hall to come face to face with Nancy Dorneget and frantically looked around for his father. She gave him an understanding smile. "Anthony is in the restroom. Don't worry, he didn't hear your conversation."

"But you did?"

"Both of you boys are sweet to be concerned about me, but don't worry. I'm a single woman that built a successful business on my own. I've been dealing with sharks for years. In comparison, your father is a real pussycat." When Tony didn't look convinced, she patted his cheek. "I've finally realized that my son has no interest in taking over the family business. I can sell it now and enjoy my retirement years or I can work until I'm too old to enjoy myself. Your father is going to help me get the best deal I can, so I have no problem picking up his living expenses while he's doing that."

She could tell that Tony was still worried, so she leaned forward to whisper in his ear. "Besides, he's great arm candy."

Tony was still laughing about that when he arrived at Gibbs' room. Brad was there, looking over Gibbs' test results. "Hey, Gibbs, hey, Brad, should I come back?"

"Nah, it's okay, we're just finishing up. I was just telling Gibbs one more day and then he should be out of here."

"Hey, that's great, isn't it, Boss?"

Gibbs was mostly pleased. "Still don't know why I can't go home tonight? I feel fine and can come in for the breathing treatments, same as Abby."

Brad wanted to roll his eyes. "Oh, you will be coming in for breathing treatments, Gunny, and you will be going home **after** your blood tests hit the magic number. You're almost there." He tapped the chart for emphasis.

"One more day isn't that bad, Boss. Besides, that means you'll be here when McGee wakes up."

"He's waking up?"

Before Tony could say anything, Brad stepped in. "It's time to start evaluating his remaining lung function, so his sedation is being decreased. He's beaten the odds so far, let's hope he keeps it up."

-NCIS-

Abby stood in the doorway, watching as Penny softly sang to her grandson.

Life down here's been hard for you

Life has made you strong

Let me lift the mood

With my attitude...

Looking up, Penny paused and waved Abby in.

"He loved that movie as a child, I think that's when he decided he was going to be a detective."

It took Abby a few minutes to place the movie Penny was referring to. "The Great Mouse Detective? McGee?"

Penny smiled at the memory. "He was eight when it came out, must have talked me into taking him to see it at least three times. I think he went with his grandfather a few times without me, too."

Hearing that little tidbit about her friend's childhood gave Abby a matching smile. "Tell me about him when he was a kid. Please?"

"Of course." Penny reached out and tugged Abby down into the other chair. "Did you know that Tim was the only child at his school that..."

-NCIS-

After Tony visited with Gibbs, his next destination was his old room, grinning when he saw Ziva sitting in a chair, watching ZNN on the television. "If you snuck out of bed, you need to turn the sound down."

"I did not have to sneak, Tony. I am off restrictions, well, most of them. Can you believe they won't let me drive for six months?"

"Could have been worse, Ziva. Could have been a whole lot worse."

-NCIS-

Dinner at the house that night was a light and healthy concoction of chicken and vegetables, the tofu Penny suggested being vetoed by Jack and Anthony, much to Tony's relief.

Instead, she baked a pan of the lemongrass bars she made for her family and left them for a late snack for the group.

As soon as Penny and Jack left for their evening visits with Tim and Gibbs, Tony tried one of the bars, immediately spitting it out. "If McGee eats these, he's braver than I thought." Abby whacked his shoulder.

"Timmy is brave, Tony."

"I know, Abs." Tony leaned close and kissed her cheek. "He's more than proved it, believe me."

Anthony turned from the freezer, his own lemongrass bar buried in rocky road ice cream. As he held the bowl, Abby topped it off with whipped cream. "Here, this should help kill the taste."

As they passed the bottle of chocolate syrup back and forth, Tony's eyes narrowed. He'd never expected his father to be so domestic around the team. After the bowls of dessert were passed out, Anthony started washing the dishes, waving away the offer of help Abby made.

Abby tugged Tony down onto the sofa next to her. "Relax, Tony, I think it's kind of sweet that your dad wants to take care of us."

"Yeah, I guess so." Tony watched as his father rinsed dishes and stacked them in the dishwasher. He appeared to know what he was doing, something that surprised his son. "Is he changing, or did I just not know him before?"

She turned and looked thoughtfully at him for a moment before settling her head down on his shoulder. "Maybe it's a little bit of both, Tony. He's getting older, seeing what he's missed. I bet it was really scary for him to see the news about the bombing."

Burrowing closer to Tony, Abby's voice became emotional. "When I talked to Luca, he said that the reporters were at the Yard filming before the ambulances even got there and the television stations showed it non-stop for hours."

"Damn."

Finished with the dishes, Anthony came in just in time to hear Abby's comment about the hours of television coverage. "I was waiting for a cab, heard the news on the radio so I ducked into the first bar I found – sat there for hours watching the reports, hoping to see a glimpse of your face. I was still sitting there, waiting, when Jackie Vance called and let me know you were still alive. She offered me help getting to DC and all I could think about were all the times I wasn't there when you needed me."

Tony stared at his father, not knowing what to say. It was Abby that finally spoke. "What made you decide to come?"

"It was the bartender." Anthony shook his head as he thought about it. "He reminded me that what I did right then was the most important thing, not a lifetime of falling down on the job as your old man."


	29. Chapter 29

**a/n - Snicker, I didn't plan it this way, but I'm glad this chapter came right after the season opener, which was seriously lacking in the h/c department, even with McGee being hurt. Sigh, it could have been so good if they'd just taken it a little further.**

* * *

When the nurse came in at 06.00, she found Gibbs sitting up, waiting for her. "If you don't want me walking down to the ICU, then you'd better get me a wheelchair."

She laughed and shook her head. "You just cost me twenty bucks."

"You should know better than betting against a Gunny." Brad arrived with a wheelchair and a grin. "Gibbs, I'm not even going to try to convince you to stay here, but I'll warn you – it could be hours before he shows any sign of waking up."

Gibbs swung his legs over the edge of the bed, reaching back to hold his hospital gown closed as he stood. "Do I have someplace else to be?"

"No, I suppose not."

Since he was on his way down to check on McGee, Dr. Pitt pushed the wheelchair down to Intensive Care. Gibbs took over once they were in McGee's room, finding a spot near the head of the bed that kept him out of the way as Brad and McGee's surgeon examined him. Once they were satisfied and withdrew to review his latest scans and blood tests, he was able to roll closer, resting his hand on Tim's shoulder.

"You're going to be just fine, McGee. I know it."

-NCIS-

Tony had barely gotten out of bed when his father arrived at the house, parking a rental car in the driveway. A suitcase could be seen in the back seat. "You heading out, Dad?"

The older man looked a little unsure of himself as he came into the house. "Ned Dorneget is being transferred to a hospital closer to his family's home. His mother..."

"Wants you to help her sell the family business." Tony finished for him, letting his father know that he wasn't totally in the dark.

"You're doing all right now, Junior, and I think we get along better in smaller doses – but if you need me to stay..."

"No. No, it's okay, Dad. Just remember, this isn't like your normal business deals, this isn't about you."

Anthony studied the expression on his son's face. "You're worried that I'll take advantage of her. I probably deserve that."

Tony didn't know what to say and stared at his feet as Senior continued to talk. "Hell, at one time I would have, but she's not like the women I usually date. She needs – no – she makes me walk the straight and narrow, like your mom did before everything happened. I haven't been a good man in a long time, Junior. You and your friends have shown me that, but I feel like I've got another shot at being an honorable man. This time I won't let you down."

Stepping closer, Anthony pulled his son into a tight hug. "I want to be the kind of dad you'd be proud of again. Even if it's just a fraction of the pride I have in you."

"Aw, Dad." Tony felt himself choking up as he returned the hug. "You take care of yourself, okay? When you're done in Arizona, stop by for a real visit before you go back to New York."

"I'd like that. Stay safe, Tony, and take care of your family here." Anthony tapped Tony's cheek before slipping out the door. Tony watched the car as it pulled out of the driveway and down the street. Once it turned the corner and was out of view, he retreated to the living room, deep in thought.

Abby was there, sitting on the sofa with her feet tucked under her. From her expression, it was apparent that she'd heard most, if not all, of the conversation. "Are you okay?"

He dropped down next to her, pulling her close to kiss the top of her head. "Honestly, I'm not sure."

-NCIS-

Penny left for the hospital early, with a car load of support for Tim. They stopped for coffee, knowing instinctively that Gibbs would already be at Tim's bedside. Arriving at the ICU, they met up with Ziva, who was arriving from the Neurology wing, pushed by a very amused nurse.

"I've got her, thanks." Tony took over the handles of the wheelchair as Ziva joined the procession. Several of the nurses in the ICU looked startled and began to object, but Dr. Morgan shook his head. It was a bit crowded in the room, but they all squeezed in on one side of the bed, leaving the other side for the medical personnel.

Penny stood behind Gibbs' wheelchair, clinging to the handles as she watched Tim's still form. "When will he wake up?"

Morgan didn't sugarcoat it. "There's no way to know. All we can do is to wait and hope for the best."

That wasn't good enough for Gibbs and he looked over at Pitt. "You ready?"

"Yeah, why?"

Dismissing everyone else, Gibbs leaned forward, laying his hand on Tim's head. "McGee, wake up."

The reaction was almost instantaneous as confused green eyes immediately popped open. Before he could panic, Gibbs was calming him down and explaining what was happening. "Easy, Tim, you're safe. We're all safe. You've got a tube in your throat, breathing for you. Don't fight it."

Tim didn't move except for his eyes, which bounced back and forth between Gibbs and Penny. She solved the problem by leaning closer to Gibbs so Tim could see them both at the same time. He was blinking rapidly and squinting, but it was obvious to Gibbs that Tim's vision was back, even if it wasn't one hundred percent yet.

"Damn it, Gibbs, give a guy some warning next time, will ya'?" Brad huffed softly as he moved closer. "Agent McGee, can you hear me?"

Tim frowned, his eyes tracking the sound until he saw Dr. Pitt. He looked at him for a moment, before returning his gaze to his Boss.

The tap to the head was so gentle it barely moved his hair. "Pay attention to the doctor if you want that tube out of your throat, okay?"

After staring at Gibbs for a moment, McGee obediently turned back to Dr. Pitt. Brad smiled as he started checking his new patient. "Okay, Agent McGee, I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Dr. Brad Pitt and I'm a lung specialist. It's not going to be pleasant, but we need to see what condition your lungs are in. They took a lot of damage when you were hurt, but there's a lot we can do to help you get better.

"We're going to try something called a Spontaneous Breathing Trial to see if you're ready to be taken off the vent because the sooner we can get you breathing on your own, the better the chances of a full recovery. That being said, if you're not ready, we're not going to push it. We'll keep giving you medication to help your lungs and try again in a few days. Are you ready for this?"

It was weak, but Tim gave a definite nod. Pitt looked over at the nurse, who pushed a tray closer. Once that was in place, Pitt started to explain. "You have multiple fractured ribs, so we want to make sure that you're not in any pain before we start, since that makes it harder for your chest muscles to move, but most standard pain killers can depress respiration at the levels you'll need, so we're going to give you what's called a thoracic epidural."

There was understanding in the tired green eyes, but they immediately shifted back to Gibbs, who had immediate concerns. "How are you going to do that without damaging his ribs?"

"Very carefully." Brad turned serious. "There's some risks, but it's our least risky option. The longer we wait, the more the muscles in his chest wall will atrophy." He waited until Gibbs and then Penny nodded. "Okay, Tim, we're going to roll you onto your side. You let us do all the work, all right?"

Another nurse appeared and the three of them slowly eased Tim onto his side. To give the two closest members of his family a way to help, Penny was allowed to hold Tim's head once it was in position. With his chin tucked against his chest, Tim's view was limited and his grandmother's hand was a welcome comfort. Next, his knees were drawn up, with Gibbs supporting them.

Once their patient was in the fetal position and well supported, the nurses placed the surgical drapes and washed down his back with iodine. Next, Dr. Pitt carefully place the large bore needle. Closer to the foot of the bed, both Ziva and Jack winced at the sight, while Tony had to look away. Abby was intrigued and watched closely. The actual placement of the medication catheter was relatively quick and then Tim was carefully returned to his previous position.

"How long will that be in his spine?"

"We're hoping to use the epidural for his primary pain relief for at least the next few days, Ms. Langston. Now, we're going to take a quick x-ray to double check his ribs, then we can proceed." It took longer to herd the group out of Tim's room than it took for the x-ray. By the time the machine was wheeled out and the extended team returned, Dr. Pitt was looking at the image. Satisfied, he returned to the room.

"He can't move."

Brad sighed. The epidural was high enough to block the nerves controlling McGee's extremities by design. "Gunny, right now – other than breathing – we don't want him moving. He needs time to heal."

After giving Gibbs a minute to accept it, Brad disconnected the tubing from the pressure machine and attached it to the room oxygen connection on the wall. "Okay, Tim, I want you to take a breath now, start with a shallow breath."

Everyone else held their breath, waiting for McGee to breathe. When he took his first, wheezing breath, Abby and Tony both cheered while Ziva beamed at him.

"Yes, Timmy, I knew you were going to be all right."

"Attaboy, Probie."

Brad was pleased, but they were just at the beginning of the test. "You're doing great, Tim. I want you to keep breathing, taking a little deeper breath each time, until you feel like you're taking normal breaths. You're on almost pure oxygen and we're monitoring your blood oxygen levels so you don't have to worry. We'll know if there's a problem."

Gibbs was almost getting dizzy, watching McGee, the machines and Brad's reactions to the various read-outs. McGee's blood oxygen levels had been lower than anyone he'd ever seen, even Tony's when he'd had the plague, but they dropped only slightly when he began breathing on his own.

After ten minutes Dr. Pitt declared the test a success. "How'd you like to get rid of that tube in your throat?"

Tim gave a brief nod, but there was no mistaking the fear in his eyes, so Brad explained what was going to happen.

"After we remove the tube, we're going to put you on a low-pressure system. There will be a mask over your face, giving you the oxygen you need and if your breathing falters in any way, it will keep pushing air into your lungs and sound an alarm at the nurses' station."

The bed was raised, putting McGee in an upright position and as he blew out, the tube was removed. Tim coughed weakly, his eyes watering and Gibbs reached out, drying his lashes with his thumb. "That part sucks, but it feels great to have it out, doesn't it?"

"Yeah." It was little more than a whisper, but it brought Penny to tears.

"Oh, Timothy, Sweetheart, I've been so worried about you."

"I'm... I'm okay." Tim looked around, seeing the rest of his team and Jack surrounding his bed. He looked directly at Tony. "Okay?"

Tony struggled to keep his voice steady. "Yeah, man, we're all okay, just waiting for you to get better."

Tim nodded, his eyes already starting to close. "Good." Succumbing to the sleep he so desperately needed, Tim's face turned, nestling into the strong hand still cupped against his cheek.

Once he was sleeping peacefully, Penny could no longer hold back the tears and buried her face in Jack's shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her.

Tony's eyes widened at the sight and grinning, glanced over at Gibbs who was paying the couple no attention. Abby and Ziva were both smiling at them, however. Tony backed Ziva's wheelchair out of the room, Abby following them, and the three retreated to the waiting room before saying anything.

"When did that start?"

"I have no idea, Ziva. Abby?"

"I don't know, but isn't it great? Just think, if Penny and Jack get together, that would make Gibbs Tim's stepfather."

Ziva knew that the American culture was a little looser about family ties than her own, but she was convinced that was a stretch. "I don't think it works like that, Abby."

"Besides," Tony grinned at the two of them. "I'm much more interested in watching Probie question Gibbs about his father's intentions."


	30. Chapter 30

**a/n - Bet you didn't see this coming. On another note, yeah - I know family breakdowns and that Jack's involvement with Penny would not actually make Gibbs Tim's step-dad. The real question is - who's brave enough to explain that to Abby? Especially since the Admiral can't be bothered to show up and act like a father.**

* * *

Under protest, Gibbs returned to his room for a final check before he was officially discharged, but he did demand an extra hour to watch Tim's breathing as he slept. Although his oxygen levels came dangerously close to the red line on the gauge, the alarm never sounded.

Gibbs spent some time with a physical therapist, proving that he could use a cane to keep enough weight off his burned leg. At the same time, Tony, Abby, Jack and Penny discussed plans. The decision was reached that Tony would drive Gibbs back to his house to pack some clothes before taking him to the house where they were staying. He would return later in the afternoon when Ziva was released, picking up Abby at the same time.

Jack opted to stay at the hospital, knowing that Tony would relish the chance to help his boss without interference. Tony, of course, was amused by the fact that Jack would be staying at Penny's side. The gentle head slap he received was just icing on the cake.

"Feels good to be out of the hospital, doesn't it?" Tony glanced at the large building in his rear view mirror before returning his attention to the road. Despite his bravado, he was a little worried about driving so soon after his latest concussion and was hyper-vigilant as he kept track of the traffic on the busy road.

Gibbs grunted as he closed his eyes and leaned back. "Relax, DiNozzo, you're doing fine."

Tony did relax at those words and soon they were pulling into the familiar driveway. Gibbs climbed out of the car without waiting for help and slammed the door.

"Boss, what's wrong?"

The older man glared at the freshly mowed lawn and pruned bushes. "One of the neighbors must have worked on the yard."

"And that's a problem?" Baffled, Tony looked around. The roses were cut back shorter than any of the neighbors', which were still in full bloom. "Maybe Jack?"

"Jack knows better." Gibbs thumped up the steps and into the house. A faint smell drew him into the kitchen where a stack of dishes waited in the sink. Tony was right behind him.

"Guess Jack didn't get around to doing dishes before he left."

"My father hates peanut butter." Gibbs turned and left the kitchen, leaning heavily on the railing as he went upstairs. Confused, Tony looked closer at the dishes, noticing a plate with the crust of a peanut butter sandwich. A shouted curse from upstairs brought him running.

"Boss, what is it? What's wrong?"

Gibbs was standing in the doorway of the master bedroom, staring at the rumpled bed.

"Boss?"

"That bastard's been in my house."

"Dearing?"

-NCIS-

Checking into a new motel room under his new alias, Harper Dearing had to smile. Prejudice was a wonderful thing when you could use it in your favor. A combination of spray tan, theatrical make-up, a bottle of hair dye and a fake Hispanic accent and no one even looked at him twice. Combined with the supplies from Dunham and he'd managed to "work" his shift at Bethesda without raising suspicion. Tossing his glasses on the dresser in the cheap room, Dearing remembered the thrill of mopping the floor outside McGee's room, watching the team as McGee obediently woke up and started breathing on Gibbs' orders.

He opened his duffel bag and pulled out a change of clothes. Polo shirts and Docker pants from Sears weren't his usual choice, but considering where he'd acquired them, he was going to enjoy wearing them.

-NCIS-

Gibbs didn't even wait for his call to be acknowledged before he was yelling into the phone. "Fornell, get your forensic team to my place right now. Dearing's been here... yes, I'm sure of it."

-NCIS-

Reviewing the civil engineer's preliminary report on the integrity of the building with Secretary Jarvis, Vance almost let the call go to voice mail. It was only the fact that the call was from Fornell, and hopefully about Dearing, made him answer it.

"Fornell, tell me you've got that bastard."

Jarvis listened and watched as Vance became suddenly furious. "I'm on my way." So focused, Vance didn't even register that Jarvis was following him until they were in the parking lot.

"Where are we going, Leon?"

"Gibbs had a house guest while he was in the hospital and he thinks it was Dearing."

"Ah, hell."

-NCIS-

Dearing straightened the navy polo as he stood in front of the mirror. He hadn't planned on helping himself to Gibbs' wardrobe, but when Dunham had pulled out one shirt for his new driver's license photo, the temptation had been too great. He'd planned on ending this much quicker, but he liked this new plan so much more.

Turning on the television, he leaned back on the bed. The bombing was no longer the top news story, but he could count on the footage being shown at least once an hour.

-NCIS-

Chaos reigned on Gibbs' street when the SecNav's car arrived. The bomb squad was still clearing the house, so Sacks directed them to a nearby park where they found Gibbs pacing as Fornell and DiNozzo tried to calm him down.

"Boss, you need to relax, why don't you sit down?" Tony tried to herd his boss towards a bench and got a cane across his leg for his trouble. It didn't hurt, but the warning was clear.

"DiNozzo's right, Jethro. Remember, you just got out of the hospital."

"Yeah." Gibbs rounded on Fornell, getting right in his face. "And while I was in the hospital, Dearing was in my house, eating my food, drinking my bourbon. Damn it, Tobias, he slept in my bed."

Vance stepped close, making sure not to surprise his well trained agent. "Do we have confirmation that it was Dearing?"

"Who else would..."

Fornell cut in. "Not yet, Sir."

"Actually, we do." Assorted heads swiveled at the new voice. One of the forensic techs stood there, looking nervous. "We can't get in the house yet, but I was able to pull fingerprints off the hedge trimmers. It was Dearing."

"Hedge trimmers?" Jarvis looked to Gibbs, who was leaning heavily on his cane, but it was DiNozzo that quietly explained.

"He cut down all of Gibbs' rose bushes."

"From terrorist to mad gardener? Why?"

"My father could have been here, could have come face to face with Dearing."

Family was the one thing that mattered to Gibbs, it was the one overriding principle Vance remembered when dealing with the stubborn man. Dearing had hurt his team, his kids, and now was dancing around his father. Vance grabbed his shoulders, forcing him to stop pacing. "But he didn't. Jack is safe. Dearing is trying to get into your head, get you all turned around. Don't let him."

Breathing rapidly, Gibbs glared at Vance before rubbing his free hand across his face. "You're right."

Fornell's phone rang and he answered it without looking. "Yeah, Fornell... okay, thanks." He pocketed the phone and turned back to Gibbs. "Bomb squad cleared the place, it's clean."

Gibbs didn't say a word as he started back towards his house.

-NCIS-

"Tell me again, Abby, why I am not returning home?" All Ziva had been told was that housing arrangements had been made.

Abby hopped up on the other bed in the room. "We're all going to be together, isn't that great? We'll be able to take care of each other."

"I am fine, Abby."

"Not yet but you will be, just like the rest of us – even McGee." Abby's face fell as she thought about the long recovery their friend faced. "Besides, it's safer to all be together."

Ziva reached out and laid her hand on Abby's arm. "Dearing wants to make the Navy pay for what happened to his son. He is not after any of us in particular. We cannot make this personal."

"It was personal, Ziva. The Yard was our home and he blew it up. You don't get more personal than that." Abby pulled away and started pacing. "That's why we need to be together. He took away our home but we cannot let him take our family. That's why we have to be together, to show him that we're stronger than his twisted hatred."

"Alright, Abby." Ziva caught her arm as she went by, forcing her to stop. "We will all stay together; we will help each other heal."

Abby seemed to deflate as she sank down into a chair. "Okay,"

-NCIS-

As the group followed Gibbs into the house, Tony took a careful look around. Gibbs' home had always filled him with simple comfort, but now it left him unsettled. Everything had been shifted and moved by the bomb squad and coated with fingerprint powder by the forensic team. He knew his own team had left homes in similar straits, but this time it was very different. Gibbs looked very old, tired and lost as he looked around the home he'd once shared with Shannon and Kelly.

"Boss, you just got out of the hospital. Maybe we should leave this for another day."

Gibbs just shook his head and looked over at one of the FBI's techs that was still scanning fingerprints into his portable system. "How many rooms was he in?"

"All of them, sorry."

The only sign Gibbs had heard was a jerky nod before he went up the stairs. Tony stayed right on his heels, worried about how long his boss had been on his feet. Going to the end of the hall, Gibbs stopped at a door that Tony had never seen open. He watched as Gibbs visibly squared his shoulders and took a deep breath before pushing against the partially open door. It seemed such a violation to see the dolls and teddy bears scattered around, the mattress overturned by the bomb squad, black powder on everything. Gibbs stood in the middle of the room for a moment before turning and storming out without a word.

Tony stopped long enough to grab Fornell's arm. "You tell your guys to clean this up, all of it."

Fornell started to object, to tell DiNozzo that resources were tight and personnel stretched even tighter, but then he really looked at the room, at the memories of a little girl's life scattered and sullied, not only by a madman but by those sworn to stop him. "Yeah, I'll take care of it, DiNozzo."

"Thanks, Fornell." Tony took the stairs two at a time, worried that Gibbs would have left without him. He didn't have to worry, Gibbs was sitting on the passenger side of the sedan, waiting for him.

"Hey, Boss, thought you might have taken off."

Gibbs was looking straight ahead through the window. "You've got the keys to the sedan, my car is still at the Yard and my truck sure as hell isn't going anywhere right now."

Tony looked over at the old pick-up. It had obviously been thoroughly searched, the seats and ignition system still laying in the driveway. "Don't worry, Boss. Fornell said he'd make sure his guys cleaned up." Gibbs gave a grunt, indicating what he thought of that idea.

They were several blocks away before Gibbs spoke. "Let's swing by the Yard, I'll grab my go bag from my car."

"Boss?" Tony started to object until he saw the set of Gibbs' chin and knew it wasn't open to discussion. "Yeah, okay." In truth DiNozzo wanted to see the Yard, to see the damage to the building in person instead of the limited view the news reports had given.

Once they'd arrived, he wished he'd tried to talk Gibbs out of it. The video he'd seen hadn't prepared him at all for the total devastation he was seeing. "Can they even save the building?"

"I don't know." Gibbs slowly looked around, taking in every detail. Experts were still going through the debris that was once Vance's car. Another Marine was up on a ladder studying something in a tree. Curious, Gibbs limped over and watched as the branch in question was cut and lowered. His breath caught as he realized it was the knife he'd handed Cole that day, now buried to the hilt through the center of the branch – a stark reminder of the power of the blast.

"Damn, this must have been inside the car when it blew."

"Actually," Gibbs paused, looking back over his shoulder as he remembered. "It was in the hand of the man trying to disarm the bomb."

The Staff Sergeant looked over at the remains of the car and then back up at the tree before shaking his head. "Three tours in Afghanistan and sometimes the power of an explosion still amazes me. Did you know him?"

"I sent him out there."

"My condolences, sir. He must have been a good man."

The side of Gibbs' mouth twisted slightly. "In the end he was."

-NCIS-

"Let's get out of here, DiNozzo." Tony jumped as Gibbs appeared at his side, a bag over his shoulder.

He hadn't realized how much time he'd lost staring at the bombed out building. "Sorry, Boss, it just didn't seem real before, you know?"

Gibbs gently squeezed his shoulder. "Yeah, I know."

"It's a miracle any of us survived." Finally, Tony had to know, had to ask the question he'd been pushing back since he'd first awakened. "How many?"

Pretending to misunderstand the question would have been easy, but Gibbs wouldn't do that to Tony. "Thirty-nine souls."

"Damn it." Tony pressed his knuckles against his mouth as he tried to absorb the knowledge. "Damn it to hell. How do we..."

Go on? Live with the survivor's guilt? There were a dozen ways to finish the question, but to Gibbs there was only one answer. "We track that SOB down and make sure he never hurts another living soul again."

By the time Tony delivered Gibbs to the house they were staying in, it was time to go back and get Ziva. "You going to be all right by yourself, Boss?"

"I'm a big boy, DiNozzo." He followed Tony into the house and dropped his bag onto the bed pointed out. "Just going to take a shower and catch forty winks."

"Don't forget to wrap your leg." Tony grinned as Gibbs started digging through the kitchen drawers looking for plastic wrap.

Gibbs kept up the glare until he was alone in the house. Once he heard the car pull away, he dropped into the nearest chair and buried his face in his hands.

-NCIS-

"I do not believe it." Ziva was dressed and ready to be discharged. She shook her head again. "Dearing should be done, he should be running as far as he can."

"Yeah, well, he's not." Tony stared over Ziva's shoulder at Abby's wide eyes. "He's fixated on Gibbs, every aspect of his life."

"So, what do we do? We have to do something, Tony." Abby was wringing her hands as she watched Tony, expecting him to have an answer.

Suddenly exhausted, Tony shook his head. "I don't know, Abs, but Jack needs to know."

Ziva looked pensive. "Is it possible that Dearing was upstairs when Jack was there?"

Tony really didn't want to think about it. "Yeah, it is."

-NCIS-

"Fornell, you here?" Vance opened the door, juggling a bag of food and two bags of cleaning supplies.

"Up here."

Vance followed the voice upstairs and found the FBI agent in Kelly's bedroom. He set the bag of sandwiches down on a small table and the cleaning supplies on the bed. "Here, steak panini."

Tobias spied the logo on the bag. "From Vocelli's? You are a prince among men, Leon."

"How long do you think he was here?" Vance picked up a blonde doll in a princess costume and absently started brushing the black powder out of her hair.

"Who knows." Fornell finished cleaning the cup from a tea set and replaced it on the shelf. "If I were Jethro, the fact that he stepped into this room is enough."

Leon looked around at the room that had been perfectly preserved all these years. "Yeah, well, let's see if we can get it put back together."


	31. Chapter 31

**a/n - Yeah, I'm a little let down with the new season so far. I think they're trying to cover too much, too quick. I'm much happier with my version, Still have a ways to go, but things are starting to heat up. Thanks for all the reviews, you guys are the best.**

* * *

"You all right, Leroy?" Jack watched his son stare out the window at the FBI agent posted outside. When he didn't get an answer, Jack moved closer. "If it helps, I wasn't at your place very much – spent most of my time at the hospital until Abby was released. By then, Penny had lined up this place for all of us."

Gibbs turned and looked at his father with an expression Jack had only a few times, most recently at Kelly and Shannon's funeral. "He hurt my family, Dad, and it was just dumb luck that he didn't get you."

"Dumb luck or not, he didn't get me and the team is going to be all right, even Tim. Focus on that, son. Let Fornell hunt down Dearing, and just recover and take care of your kids."

Patting his father's shoulder, Gibbs moved down the hallway, stopping at the partially open door to Abby's room. Easing it further open, he checked on her, coming into the room to straighten the blankets over her shoulder. Abby smiled in her sleep and burrowed down in the bedding as Gibbs bent to kiss her cheek. The open bathroom doors gave him access to Ziva's room. He stood in the doorway and chuckled at the sight of his ninja snoring softly, surrounded by stuffed animals. As Jack watched in amusement from the safety of the bathroom door, Gibbs quietly crept across the room and rescued a teddy bear that was about to tumble off the bed, returning it to a place of honor on the pillow.

"Thanks, Gibbs." Ziva's eyes were still closed as she pulled the bear close, nuzzling it with a smile. Gibbs returned the smile as he kissed her forehead.

Completing his circuit, Gibbs crossed the hall and entered the next bedroom. Tony was sprawled across the bed, one leg hanging off the edge. Shaking his head, Gibbs went to work straightening his Senior Agent onto the bed. Once he was done, Tony rolled onto his stomach, pulling his pillow close.

"Thanks, Boss."

Gibbs gave a chuckle and patted Tony's shoulder as he stood. "You did good today, Tony, taking care of everyone. Get some sleep."

"You too, Boss. You need to be a hundred percent to take on Dearing."

As Tony stilled, Gibbs looked over at the second bed in the room, empty and waiting for his other boy to leave the hospital and his hatred for Dearing grew even more.

-NCIS-

"Good morning." Penny handed Gibbs a cup of coffee as he walked into the kitchen.

He took his first sip as he made his way across to the table, hooking his cane on the back of his chair as he sat down. "Not bad."

"Navy coffee is pretty close to Marine coffee – at least that's what Timothy tells me. Well, I'm on my way to the hospital, but Vance is having two more cars delivered this afternoon to make it easier." She wrapped a scarf around her neck and picked up her purse while Gibbs gulped down more of his coffee and stood.

"I'll go with you."

Penny wasn't surprised. "All right, I'm sure Timothy will have questions that I can't answer about the case."

"He doesn't need to be worrying about the case right now." Even as he objected, Gibbs knew that McGee would be thinking about new ways to track down Harper Dearing.

-NCIS-

"Keep me posted." Vance waved at one of his technicians who cut the feed from the field office in Africa. The new, temporary MTAC was nothing like what they were used to, but it was secure and functional even if there were armed guards instead of iris scanners keeping unauthorized personnel out. The plus side was that the guards would announce anyone unexpected and Vance turned around as the name Jarvis echoed through the reinforced brick room.

"Mr. Secretary."

The SecNav looked around. Instead of the rows of comfortable chairs, visitors were forced to sit on folding chairs lining the back wall. Rather than the multiple, massive screens that covered the walls of MTAC, three older screens were lined up in a row over the work benches where the technicians were elbow to elbow as they worked. "Little cramped in here."

"Unfortunately, it's the only room here that's secure enough with a power source that can't be compromised. We're managing."

Jarvis wasn't convinced, but he had news that would help moral if nothing else. "Well, the consulting civil engineer has signed off on the plans submitted and the SeeBees can start repairs later today. Structural work will go round the clock."

A cheer went up before several of the technicians realized who they were drowning out. "Sorry, Sirs."

Showing a rare human moment to a group of subordinates, Jarvis smiled grimly and shook his head. "No apologies necessary. I think we're all looking forward to things getting back to normal."

Vance couldn't help think of the many funerals planned, starting that afternoon. "Or at least as close as we can get it. Do we have a time table for the repairs?"

"Complete repairs, six months at least, but enough temporary repairs could be done to have you back in critical areas in three or four weeks. It just won't be pretty. Now tell me, what's the status on the terrorist camps in North Africa?" Despite what had happened to the Yard, the world still moved on.

-NCIS-

"Gibbs, I'm glad you're here." Dr. Pitt didn't waste any time as he ushered them through. "Tim is rather stressed and we can't seem to get him calmed down."

"Did something happen?" Gibbs looked around, checking for the agents stationed outside the ICU unit. They were in place as expected.

Pitt shook his head. "No, nothing has happened."

By now they were at his room, so Gibbs went in to see what had Tim so upset. His voice was muffled by the mask, so Gibbs lifted it off but held it close enough for the injured man to still be breathing the oxygen. After a quick check of the various gauges and knobs, he thumbed off the alarm. "Easy, McGee, what's got you so riled up?"

"Make them... listen... Boss. Want... it out." The weakness was evident in Tim's voice as he struggled to speak.

Gibbs brushed his hand over Tim's head. "Want what out?" Brad answered, explaining before Tim could try.

"He wants us to remove the epidural, but he needs it for pain relief."

"Can't move... can't defend."

"Easy, okay, I understand." Gibbs did understand. He'd trained his team to always be ready to defend themselves, even his innocent computer geek. He turned to Dr. Pitt. "How soon can he go back on a morphine drip instead of the epidural?"

"Gibbs, there's guards outside his room and no one gets in the unit without ID. He's perfectly safe."

"How soon?"

Pitt realized he was fighting a losing battle, so he opted for a compromise. "How about one more day on the epidural? We'll stop the epidural drugs in the morning and start the morphine drip. If you're able to handle just being on the morphine, then we'll remove the catheter from your spine in the afternoon."

Seeing the stubborn set of McGee's jaw, Gibbs added his own contribution to the compromise. "I'll stay right here until then. Nobody's getting to you on my watch, McGee." The two men stared at each other in a silent conversation until Tim eventually nodded. Decision made, Gibbs returned the mask to Tim's face and settled into the chair, his hand on Tim's shoulder.

Penny watched, amazed as Tim instantly stilled, falling into a restful sleep almost as quickly. Even Brad softly laughed as he shook his head. "Could have used you here last night, Gunny. Nurses tell me he didn't sleep worth a damn."

"Next time that happens, you make sure they call me, got it?" Gibbs shifted around, turning a second chair around so he could elevate his burned leg. That left a third chair for Penny and she took it with a smile, watching Gibbs as he subtly fussed over her grandson. She knew how much he'd craved such caring from his own father when he was growing up and could see how much it meant to him to receive it now. Even if Gibbs wasn't his father by blood, she was pretty sure he was taking over the spot in every other way.

-NCIS-

When Tony wandered out of the bedroom he followed his nose to the kitchen where Jack was flipping hotcakes as the girls watched in amusement. "Are those..."

"Chocolate chip pancakes. Figured you kids could use a treat for your first morning together."

Ziva looked a little troubled at his comment. "But we will not be all together until McGee is released from the hospital."

Jack reached across and squeezed her hand. "And we'll have another celebration when Tim comes home. Penny's already promised his favorite pancakes for his first morning."

"Dinosaur shaped?" Tony couldn't quite hold back the grin.

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

Tony remembered back to an early morning visit he and Kate had made on a very young, very green probationary agent. "Lucky guess."

Jack laughed as he reached into one of the overhead cupboards. "Well, do you want regular syrup or do you want a splash of chocolate syrup? That's the way Leroy would have them when he was a kid."

That stopped Tony in his tracks. "Gibbs would have chocolate syrup on pancakes?"

"He and his mama," Jack had a wistful look on his face. "The only two people in the world I ever saw eat them that way. Course, after she was gone, he quit eating anything sweet."

Smiling at that little tidbit, Tony took the chocolate syrup and swirled a generous amount on his pancakes before passing the bottle to Ziva.

-NCIS-

True to his word, Gibbs never strayed more than a few feet from McGee's bed all day, even telling loud stories about various old cases so Tim could still hear his voice when he made a rare head call. The rest of the time he was a silent sentry for the young man that slept so easily in his presence, even sleeping through the visits from the rest of the team.

At 22.00, Penny called it a night, kissing both men on the head as she stood and stretched. "Do you need anything else before I leave, Jethro?"

He checked his most recent coffee, Penny had kept him well stocked with the good stuff and insisted he eat the food that she brought. "Nah, I'm good."

Pleased by how well Tim was resting, Penny smiled and spoke to several nurses on her way out, not noticing the man carefully polishing the floor just out of view from her grandson's room.


	32. Chapter 32

It was the end of his 'shift' so Dearing left the hospital empty handed, but with a plan firmly developed in his mind. Once he was back at his current flophouse, he dialed Dunham.

_~I thought we were done, Dearing.~_

"Not until I see the great Leroy Jethro Gibbs buckle under the pressure. This is what I need you to do tomorrow..." He outlined his plan and heard Dunham laugh.

_~You're even more devious than I thought, Harper.~_

"Why, thank you, Liam. Coming from you, that's quite a compliment. So, you can handle your end?"

_~I'll be set up and waiting for the signal. This is going to be good. Hell, I might hack into the security feed at Bethesda just to see the look on his face.~_

-NCIS-

"Good morning, Penny." Tony was the second of the team to join Ms Langston in the kitchen. She smiled and poured a glass of orange juice for him.

"Tony, you're up early this morning."

He returned the smile as he took the offered glass before sliding into the chair next to Abby. "Boss wanted me to send something with you and Abby this morning." Tony set a small but wicked looking knife down on the kitchen table in front of him.

Abby paused as she was tying her hair up. "Gibbs doesn't have a knife with him?"

"Yeah, he's got his." Tony hesitated, not knowing how Penny would react. "It's for McGee."

Penny stared at the weapon. She'd been out of the room when the request had been made, but Gibbs had warned her afterward. She understood in theory, but she was worried about Tim being overpowered when he was so weak. "Not until he has full use of his arms again, Tony. That, I'm going to insist on."

-NCIS-

Brad shook his head as he leaned against the door jam. Gibbs was slouched down in his chair, head tilted back as he snored. The second Brad stepped into the room, however, Gibbs was instantly awake. "At ease, Gunny, it's just me."

Despite his casual words, Dr. Pitt didn't move further until he was sure Gibbs was fully aware of where he was and who was entering the room.

It took a few seconds, but Gibbs nodded to him before rubbing his face. "Hey, Doc, you ready to change him over?"

Instead of answering, Pitt jerked his head towards the corner of the room. Understanding the silent request, Gibbs stood and walked stiffly over to join the doctor. "What's wrong?"

"I'm really not comfortable with this, Gibbs. If we can't keep his pain levels under control it's going to put a lot of strain on him. Do you really think the guy that planted the bomb is still around?"

"He was at my house, slept in my bed, stole my clothes, drank my booze and cut down my rose bushes while I was your guest upstairs."

"Shit."

"He's rubbing it in my face that I can't touch him yet. I don't care how safe McGee is here, I get why he feels vulnerable."

"And that would put more stress on him than being in pain." Finally understanding, Dr. Pitt nodded to a nurse to bring in the morphine pump.

The change over was fairly quick, but Brad wanted to make sure McGee was aware of his options. "Tim, we've left the catheter in place for now. If the pain gets to the point where it's affecting your ability to breathe deep enough, we'll need to start the epidural again for your own safety, all right?"

"I'll be... fine. How soon... before I can move my arms?"

"The feeling will start to come back in an hour or so."

That wasn't what Tim was asking, so he pressed again. "Move?"

Brad pursed his lips together. Between the looks on the two men's faces, he knew he was going to have to give more details. "A few hours after that, but probably this afternoon before you have fine motor skills. We've been using some pretty potent stuff."

McGee's frustration was obvious, but the arrival of his grandmother and Abby provided a distraction. After Penny had a moment to make sure he had an uneventful night, she backed away to give Abby a few minutes to fuss over her friend. Tim distracted, Penny cornered Gibbs as Dr. Pitt left the room.

"I've told Abby not to give you that knife until after Tim's able to hold it safely. I won't have him struggling and risk hurting himself."

"Ms Langston..."

"No." Penny shook her head. "There's FBI in the building, every visitor has to sign in and someone is always with him. As long as he's here in ICU, he's safe."

"He needs to feel safe, too."

"I will not allow you to feed his fear and paranoia, Gibbs. He needs all his energy for his recovery."

"Which will be easier if he feels safe. As soon as he can hold that knife and defend himself, I'm giving it to him. That's what he wants, and it's his choice."

Since they actually had the same timetable, Penny dropped her objections, but she did feel that Gibbs was overreacting. "Very well, Gibbs."

The conversation might have continued, but a nurse poked her head in the room. "Dr. Pitt wanted me to remind you that he's expecting you and Miss Sciuto upstairs for your breathing treatment in ten minutes."

-NCIS-

Benjamin McGee leaned forward, elbows on his knees, as he rubbed his face. "Just how bad is it, Doc? She's had bad days before."

Dr. Hall didn't sugarcoat his findings. "This wasn't just a bad day, Ben. The MRI showed a massive new lesion, big enough that her current level of deficit may become her new normal. My colleagues and I have reviewed Barbara's case file and we're in agreement. Her MS has developed into what we call Progressive-Relapsing MS. In addition to the gradual progression we've seen in the past, she will have more and more of these more severe episodes."

"But this was brought on by the stress, right? We make sure she doesn't have to deal with stress like this again, and..."

"No, Ben." Dr. Hall shook his head. "The only thing the stress affected was the timing of this attack. It was coming, one way or another."

Admiral McGee pressed his hands against his heavily starched pants to hide his trembling. "There has to be something else you can do. Please?"

The answer was slow, telling just how serious Dr. Hall considered the situation. "There is another medication we can try, but there are some very serious risks. Why don't you go in and visit with Barbara and Sarah while I review this morning's test results, then we'll discuss our options."

-NCIS-

Harper Dearing was cleaning a recently vacated room across from McGee's room and covertly watched as Gibbs and Abby left for their breathing treatments. Using the wadded up bedding as cover, he sent a text to Dunham, setting their plan in motion. Quickly and carelessly, he finished the room and prepared to move across the hall.

-NCIS-

Finally alone with Tim, Penny settled into the chair, brushing his hair away from his face. Tim studied her closely. "What aren't you telling, Penny?" She froze for a split second, telling him he was right.

"Nothing for you to worry about, Sweetheart. I'm just worried about you."

"Penny..." Tim's voice was muffled by the mask, but he knew she could hear every word.

"Just concentrate on getting better, Timothy. Don't let anything else even cross your mind."

A figure came through the door, giving her a welcome distraction. "Housekeeping."

She barely glanced at the man pushing a cleaning cart, just enough to notice the darker skin and black hair, matching the heavy accent. "Yes, yes, of course."

He nodded and shuffled into the bathroom with his cleaning supplies just as a nurse appeared, rapping on the door frame to get her attention. "Ms Langston? There's a call for you at the nurse's station."

"A call?" Penny couldn't imagine who would be calling the hospital instead of her directly.

The nurse looked over her shoulder as several of her counterparts rushed down the hall with a crash cart. "Yes, ma'am. It's Admiral McGee."

"Well, it's about time." Ready to give her son a piece of her mind, Penny stormed out of the room.

-NCIS-

Closing the bathroom door behind him, Dearing turned on the water in the sink. Instead of scrubbing the sink, he started scrubbing off the make-up that darkened his skin even beyond the spray on tan. As he heard the nurse come in, he allowed himself a smile as he pried off the stained dental veneers. The silicone cheek pads, colored contact lenses and glasses joined them on the edge of the sink.

Looking much more like himself, Dearing turned off the water and walked out of the small bathroom, shoving the cleaning cart out in front of him. The noise caught McGee's attention and his head turned slowly towards the bathroom door.

Tim was just beginning to feel his upper body when a crash from the bathroom caught his attention. Worried what would happen if a clumsy janitor bumped into his bed, he rolled his head before recognizing his visitor.

"No."

"Hello, Agent McGee." Dearing took two large steps and snatched the call button from the bed before yanking the mask off of McGee's face. As Tim's eyes widened in fear, Dearing turned off the alarm on the oxygen system. "You've been a thorn in my side, Agent McGee. Did you know that?"

"What... do... you..." Already, Tim was struggling to take in enough oxygen on just the room air.

Dearing stroked the side of Tim's face, smiling as he felt the younger man shudder. "You're going to be my message to Gibbs, Timmy."


	33. Chapter 33

**a/n - Umm, okay. If you don't like my stories, don't read them. If the presence of my author's notes offend you, then do us all a favor and don't read my work. And most of all, if you're going to make personal attacks, don't hide behind 'guest' instead of having the guts to sign in. For everyone else, enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

Gibbs clomped out of the treatment room and across to wait for the elevator. He'd wanted Pitt to tell him he was done with the breathing treatments, but instead Gibbs had been informed that he'd need to continue for several more sessions at least. Abby hurried after her silver-haired fox, but knew not to say anything at the moment. They were still standing there, waiting for the elevator when Gibbs' phone started making a noise. It wasn't his usual ringer and he was in no mood to figure out what it was.

"Here," he tossed the phone to Abby. "Figure out what it wants."

She grinned at him. "You've got a picture message, Bossman." Her smile immediately fell as she opened the message. "Gibbs? Gibbs?"

"What?" He took one look at the expression on her face and grabbed the phone back. The picture was of a tanned, dark haired, Harper Dearing holding McGee close to him, a bouquet of dead flowers in front of them. "Hell, no."

Ignoring the elevator, not willing to wait for the doors to finally slide open, Gibbs took off for the stairs while Abby turned and ran back to find Dr. Pitt and sound the alarm.

-NCIS-

"No." Weakly, Tim tried to drag himself away from Dearing, already feeling his chest tighten up from the lack of oxygen. His arms were starting to tingle, but they felt like lean when he tried to move them.

Dearing leaned closer, wrapping one hand around Tim's neck while the other hand was touching his face. "Now, now, you don't want to exert yourself, do you? So weak, so helpless, and they left you all alone, didn't they?" The wanted man waited until McGee's struggle to breath destroyed any chance he'd had at calling for help.

"What do you say we leave a gift for Daddy Gibbs? A reminder of what happens when a father can't protect his son?" Smiling, Dearing stepped away from the bed and pulled the cleaning cart closer before tossing some used bedding onto the floor. Reaching further into the laundry bag, he pulled out a ceramic vase filled with dead and dying flowers. "Do you like them? It's the perfect bouquet to send my message I think."

Tim forced his eyes from Dearing's face to the strange floral arrangement now sitting on his bedtable, just out of reach. Even faded, the colors clashed and there seemed to be no plan to the placement. Tim knew this wasn't some random bouquet that Dearing had found in another room. Mentally he ticked off the flowers he recognized. The daisies were easy, as was the carnation, even though he'd never seen striped ones used in anything other than cheesy boutonnieres. Once tall and proud, the poppies flopped around, their original color unrecognizable. The small branch of chestnut leaves made no sense stuffed in with the flowers, neither did the long succulent leaf from an aloe plant. Just as his mind supplied him with the name, the new item in Dearing's hand stopped all other thoughts and he stared in terror.

"No, please."

McGee was too weak to be heard, but Dearing could guess what he was saying. "It's fitting, don't you think? You stayed behind to track me down and all you managed to do was hurt yourself and kill the FBI team they sent. You didn't know that, did you? Your survival cost some good men their lives. You think about that while the timer counts down. Think about that and wonder if Agent Gibbs or your precious grandmother will arrive just in time to be blown to bits."

Dearing set the timed device on the bed and brushed away a tear from Tim's face. "Now, now, I'm sure they'd tell you it was worth it. Men like Gibbs always thinks their actions are worth it, but it's time he realize what the consequences could be." He pulled Tim up against him and held his camera phone out to capture the image. Once that was done, he carefully placed the device in the vase before starting the timer and activating the secondary switch. Satisfied, he pushed the cleaning cart back out the door, his head down, and resumed his shuffling gait that let the staff ignore him. He knew that the young man's cries for help would be too weak to be heard past the closed door and the call button was out of his reach. Nodding at the agents outside the unit, Dearing went around the corner before sending the picture to Gibbs' phone. Mission accomplished, he pushed the cart into an unused room, sent one more text to Dunham and slipped away.

-NCIS-

"Hello, Honey." Benjamin McGee carefully placed his cover on the table as he slipped into his wife's hospital room. "Sarah, thank you for staying with your mother."

Sarah crossed her arms and glared at her father. "Of course I stayed. I certainly wasn't going to let her go through this alone."

The 'like you did' wasn't verbal, but Ben heard it echoing throughout the room. "I had a duty, Sarah, your mother understands that." His eyes flickered over to Barbara, but she didn't smile at him. He tried to offer a carrot to diffuse the situation. "Another year or two and I'll be able to retire and you ladies will be sick of having me underfoot."

"Thought you were going to retire when your last contract expired, Daddy. Instead you re-upped for another tour."

"Sarah, your father does important work, you know that." Barbara looked defeated, as she gave her expected response. Her daughter wasn't satisfied.

"When do we become important in his life, Mom? When does Tim?" Afraid of saying something she'd regret, Sarah picked up her purse. "I'm going to go get something to eat."

Once his daughter stormed out of the room, Ben sat down, perching on the edge of the seat to keep from creasing his uniform. Barbara stared at him.

"Have you seen Tim?"

"No. Once my duties were satisfied, I came straight here. He is..." Ben glanced down at his hands, suddenly uncomfortable. He pressed them against his legs to stop them from trembling. "Tim's injuries were more severe than I first expected, but he will be fine."

"Why? Because you say so?" Barbara's features twisted as she fought for control of her emotions. "He's our son, Ben, not a piece of machinery you can just return to the field because you don't have time to get a replacement."

"I'm well aware of that, Barbara."

"Are you? Then tell me, exactly how badly was our son injured?" She stared at his impassive face and her temper flared. "You don't know, do you? It's been days and you haven't even bothered to find out."

"Barbara..."

"Get out. Just get out." Barbara's yell brought the attention of a nurse who came in to check on her, and the Admiral slipped out the open door as she attempted to calm his wife when she burst into tears. Sarah was standing in the hallway, having never left the unit and having obviously heard the conversation.

"Daddy?"

Swallowing hard, he brushed past Sarah and headed for the waiting room, but she wouldn't let it go as she followed him. "You know something, don't you? What is it? What do you know about Tim?"

He spun around just before reaching the waiting area. "He was in a building that was blown up, Sarah, just like your grandfather."

"But Tim's still alive."

"Yeah, well, it took your grandfather two weeks to die."

It may have taken Harlan McGee weeks to die, but it only took a few seconds for Sarah McGee to recognize the emotion in her father's eyes. "You're too scared to ask."

"Until I'm in a position to do something about it, knowing the details would be a distraction." It sounded lame even to his ears and he knew Sarah wasn't buying it for a second.

She started laughing in near hysterics. "Who would have ever guessed it? The curtain has been rolled back and the Great and Powerful Oz is nothing but a fraud in a dress uniform."

"Sarah..."

"No." She held her hand up as she turned and walked away. Feeling every bit the fraud she claimed, Ben retreated to the waiting room and slumped into the nearest chair, uncaring of how he looked at that moment.

-NCIS-

Smiling at the nurse who handed her the phone, Penny was all business. "Benjamin, it's about time you called. Where are you?"

_~I'm sorry, ma'am, the Admiral will be with you momentarily.~_

"Momentarily? What in the hell does that mean and just who in the hell are you?"

_~I'm the Admiral's new yeoman, Ms Langston. He's still on a conference call, ma'am. I don't believe he expected you to reach the phone so quickly. If you give me a few moments, I'll see if I can hurry him along.~_

Penny found herself listening to music. "He put me on hold. He finally decides to call and his yeoman puts me on hold, can you believe it?"

The nurse smiled at the angry woman's rants, but she'd been around highly ranked officers enough to not be surprised.

As the music continued, Penny nodded absently at the janitor when he pushed his cart past her. Her husband had never really approved when the Navy started hiring civilians to fill some positions, but she'd always considered it a sign of the times. The song ended and another started before abruptly stopping.

"Hello? Ben, are you there? Hello, Yeoman?" Instead of an answer over the phone, there was a loud bang in the hallway as Gibbs came running in. Limping and leaning heavily on his cane, his face was turning red from the exertion as he pushed people out of his way. "Gibbs, what..."

"Dearing – Tim."

Realizing she'd been tricked, Penny dropped the phone and ran after Gibbs, stumbling when he pulled his gun before opening the door. As Gibbs quickly cleared the room and the adjoining bathroom, she rushed to Tim's bedside. "Tim, sweetie?"

The breathing mask was on the floor and Tim's lips were turning blue as he struggled to get enough oxygen. Penny retrieved the mask and placed it back on his face as Gibbs appeared at Tim's bedside.

"He's gone, McGee."

"Bomb." Even after a couple of gulps of oxygen, it took every bit of strength Tim had to speak loud enough to be heard.

Penny was closest to the only obvious change in the room, the vase, and she reached out for it. The loudly barked "No!" from Gibbs froze her hand, but she was close enough to see the device wedged in between the flowers.

Gibbs leaned closer, needing to see what she was staring at. A grenade, modified with a timer and what appeared to be a mercury switch was perched near the top of the vase. Less than thirty seconds remained on the timer. He dropped his cane as he quickly holstered his gun. "Get out of here, Penny, now."

"We can't leave Tim."

Ignoring her protests, Gibbs quickly turned the clamp before pulling the tube from the bag at the foot of the bed. Next, he grabbed the lines from the IV's and pulled them free. Penny realized what he was doing and pulled the oxygen mask off Tim's face as Gibbs slid his hands under Tim's knees and shoulders. He knew it was going to hurt both of them, but with the last few seconds ticking down, Gibbs just took a deep breath and lifted.

Tim wanted to tell them to run, to leave him there, but the one word had sapped his strength. All he could do was to curl his upper body towards Gibbs and hope it helped the older man keep his balance. He gasped at the pain the sudden movement caused, and then they were moving.

In a flash of sudden insight, Penny cranked the oxygen off at the wall valve before rushing out the door, yelling at the top of her lungs. Her cries of 'bomb' cleared the hallway as Gibbs stumbled out behind her, trying to put as much distance between McGee and the explosive device before it blew.

Seconds later, every window along the short hallway shattered as a blast rocked the Intensive Care Unit.


	34. Chapter 34

**a/n - To all my readers on the East Coast of the US, I hope you are safe. This was a storm you can tell your grandchildren about someday.**

* * *

The morning briefing was just wrapping up when the call came in. Abby's near hysterical screams about Dearing having McGee and that she'd heard an explosion had Vance immediately on his feet, along with Clayton Jarvis. Their security details were hard pressed to keep up with them as they ran for the parking lot. While Vance stayed on the line getting more details from the terrified woman, Jarvis called Fornell.

"I thought you had security at Bethesda? Dearing's there and he apparently just kidnapped Agent McGee and set off a bomb in the hospital." Not giving Fornell a chance to answer, Jarvis ended the call as he climbed into the back of his SUV.

-NCIS-

Fornell was on the move the second he heard Jarvis say Bethesda, and when the SecNav hung up on him, he immediately called his lead agent at the hospital. "What the hell happened?"

_~A small bomb went off, sir. We're still trying to determine...~_

"It was Dearing, you idiot. How'd he get past you, you're supposed to be checking?"

_~I... I don't know, sir.~_

"Well, figure it out, I'm on my way."

Sacks was at Fornell's side as they entered the elevator. "Why the hospital? He's still targeting Naval facilities?"

"His target was McGee, damn it." The second the elevator doors opened, Fornell was back on the phone to his agent at the hospital while Sacks ran for the car. "Carter, have you sealed all the exits? Don't let him get out of there with McGee."

_~McGee, sir? He's with Agent Gibbs.~_

Fornell stopped and leaned against the wall in relief. "You're sure?"

_~They're on the floor and surrounded by medical staff, but yeah, they're both here.~_

"Make sure somebody keeps eyes on him at all times and figure out how Dearing got in there."

Sacks pulled up with the car just as Fornell was ending the call. "Well?"

"Doctors are working on Gibbs and McGee. Nobody seems to know exactly what in the hell happened."

"If one of our guys screwed up, are you going to let Gibbs have him?"

Fornell snorted at the question. "If our of our guys is responsible, do you want to be the one to get between him and Gibbs?" When Sacks didn't answer, Tobias leaned back in his seat. "Yeah, me neither."

-NCIS-

Leg and lungs burning from the strain, Gibbs made it around the corner before the blast. Adrenalin spent, it was all he could do to hold onto McGee as they went down, using the wall against his back for support as he slid to the floor. Tim didn't utter a sound, but the agony on his face was clear. Gibbs was silent at first, too, as he gasped and wheezed.

Penny was on the floor next to them and she slowly pulled herself up to lean against the wall next to Gibbs as she pushed her hair out of her face. "Timothy, sweetheart?" She stopped herself from asking if he was all right, as she could tell he really wasn't even, as he gave her a weak nod. They were ignored for the moment as staff rushed back and forth, checking rooms and calling for help.

Gibbs didn't even look up as an oxygen mask was shoved in his face and another one was pressed against Tim's. Forcing himself to breathe normally, he watched as the color improved on McGee's face. It wasn't until the mask was taken away from him, did he look up to see Dr. Pitt leaning over them, Abby hovering behind him.

"Damn, Gunny, you people just can't stay out of trouble, can you?" Brad didn't wait for an answer as he started checking McGee. Dr. Morgan was in the next wave of medical personnel to arrive and joined Brad on the floor.

"Well, Agent McGee, let's see how much damage this little jaunt caused." While Morgan started checking Tim's incisions, Dr. Pitt listened to his lungs before wrapping a blood pressure cuff around his arm.

Gibbs waited until Brad loosened the cuff. "How is he?"

"Get him to calm down, okay? If he starts to hemorrhage anywhere, it won't help if his blood pressure is through the roof." Brad conferred with Dr. Morgan for a few seconds before returning his attention to the two agents. "Tim, we're going to take you in for a quick scan. I'll be back in just a minute with a stretcher."

McGee gave the briefest of nods as he concentrated on breathing, the time without oxygen still causing him problems. Gibbs leaned into his line of sight, giving him an encouraging look.

"You're doing okay, son. Just take slow, steady breaths. Don't strain yourself by forcing it, let the mask do its work." With McGee watching him, Gibbs steadied his own breathing, Tim instinctively falling into the same pattern.

Morgan, Pitt and several more of the medical staff arrived with the stretcher and worked together to lift McGee out of Gibbs' arms and onto the thin mattress. Several Marines arrived, having been summoned from other duties within the hospital by Dr. Pitt, and flanked the FBI agent tasked with escorting Tim to his CAT scan. After struggling to his feet, Gibbs held his hand out and Abby returned the phone. He turned it so he could show them the picture.

"You see this bastard, you shoot him. That understood?"

The Marines nodded immediately, but the FBI agent objected. "Sir, we just don't open fire on a suspect."

"Fine, you can handcuff his dead body." Dismissing the rule-bound agent, Gibbs turned his attention to the Marine in charge of the detail. "This man has blown up ships and subs and the Navy Yard before setting off a grenade here in the hospital. If he shows his face again, it's to launch another attack. Don't give him that chance, you got me?"

Hand resting on his sidearm, the Marine gave a sharp nod. "Don't worry, we'll keep your man safe."

"Good." He might have been upright, but Gibbs knew he wouldn't make it more than a few feet without his cane, which was still in what was left of McGee's room. Leaning on the stretcher for support, he cupped Tim's face. "You'll be as safe with them as you would be with me, son. All right?"

Even through his own pain, Tim could see the pain etched on Gibbs' face. "You okay, Boss? Your leg?"

"I'll be fine." A nurse showed up with a wheelchair and Gibbs gratefully dropped into it. "Just need to catch my breath for a few minutes."

"Jethro." Penny's face said it all – her fear, her shame for not taking Tim's need for a weapon seriously, her gratitude that he'd been saved.

With a slight incline of his head, Gibbs gave his forgiveness and accepted her thanks. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the small knife and dropped it into her purse. "Rule nine, never go anywhere without a knife."

"I get it now."

-NCIS-

The call from Fornell telling them that Dearing had not kidnapped McGee did little to ease the mood in the SUV as Jarvis' driver rushed them to the hospital. There was a great deal he wanted to say, but Vance remained silent as Jarvis was on the phone with the President.

"Thank you, Sir. I'll get the order out immediately." Jarvis snapped his phone shut and turned to Vance. "It's official, the President has ordered that Dearing be taken down with extreme prejudice."

Extreme prejudice, the official euphemism for a sanctioned hit. Vance was glad to hear it, if only because it gave Gibbs legal protection as he knew the man had no intention of simply arresting Dearing. Not after all he'd done to the Navy, the Agency and to Gibbs' family. "Good."

They arrived at the hospital right behind the military bomb squad, with Sacks pulling Fornell's car in behind the SUV. "Status?"

Between his own director, Vance and the SecNav, Tobias was beginning to feel a bit like a trained dog, only barking on command. "According to my agent on scene, Gibbs was able to get McGee out of the way of the blast. One casualty – the patient across the hall suffered a heart attack and they were unable to revive him."

"We were lucky."

The SecNav corrected Vance. "Damn lucky, Leon."

Once they arrived in the ICU, following Gibbs' angry voice led them to where they needed to go.

"Gibbs, you all right?" Vance looked his man over carefully. A wheelchair was abandoned a few feet behind him and he was leaning heavily on a battered cane, his face just inches from the face of a very intimidated FBI agent.

"I will be as soon as this yahoo tells me exactly how Dearing just walked past his men and got his hands on McGee."

Fornell stepped in, hoping to prevent any more bloodshed. "Carter, report."

"He had a disguise and proper ID, sir. His alias was in the computer system." Carter handed over Dearing's ID tag, protected in an evidence bag. "This was found hanging in a tree by one of the employee entrances."

"How did he get into the employee files?" Fornell studied the tag. It was a perfect replica, right down to the holographic lettering across the plastic cover. The face was hardly recognizable, even knowing who it actually was. The shirt, however, was and Gibbs confirmed it.

"That bastard is wearing my clothes."

"Don't let him get to you, Jethro. Don't let him make this personal."

It was the wrong thing to say and Gibbs turned on Fornell, poking at his chest to emphasize his words. "Personal? He's made it damned personal, Tobias. He's been cleaning rooms here, just waiting for a chance to get to McGee."

"Was Agent McGee aware enough to know what was going on?"

"You tell me." Gibbs tossed his phone to Vance, the picture was still up on the screen when the Director opened it. Vance felt his blood run cold when he looked at the image of the frightened, helpless man as Dearing held him close. Next to him, Jarvis cursed under his breath. Understanding Gibbs' anger and frustration he turned the phone so that Fornell could also see it.

Gibbs' hand was shaking as he rubbed his forehead. "He had an accomplice. Somebody lured Penny away with a phone call. It was too well timed to be a coincidence."

"I'll get my guys on it, see if we can trace the call." Before Fornell could say anything else, Sergeant Dempsey returned from surveying the bombed room.

"How much damage this time?"

She got straight to the point. "Very little, Mr. Secretary. If I had to make a guess, I'd say Dearing's objective was psychological damage, not structural. From what I could tell at first glance, it looks like he modified a flash-bang grenade. The concussion of the blast shattered windows, but that's about the extent of the damage."

Vance glanced over at Gibbs before speaking. "So, you're saying he played us? Would McGee even have been injured if he'd still been on the bed?" He couldn't imagine the guilt Gibbs would feel if moving McGee caused more injuries than the bomb would have.

Judging from her expression, the same thought had crossed Dempsey's mind, too. "Well, I certainly wouldn't have wanted to been laying on that bed when it exploded. The only shrapnel is glass from the vase, but the shock waves probably would have worsened his injuries." She shrugged as she turned to Gibbs. "Honestly, if it had been one of my men in there, I would have done the same thing."

Past the double doors, the elevator dinged and then the ICU was filled with Marines and Agents, surrounding a stretcher. Gibbs went straight to his man. "Hey, McGee, how ya' doing?"

"Not staying here, Boss. Not safe for any of us."

He agreed with Tim's concerns, but that hadn't been the point of the question, so Gibbs turned to Penny and Dr. Pitt. "Well?"

Penny let the doctor explain. "We got lucky, Gibbs, real lucky. No new injuries and the surgical repairs are holding. We'll get him settled in a new room and - "

"No." The weak voice caused everyone to turn to McGee. "No, I told you, I'm not staying."

"Timothy, sweetheart..."

McGee ignored his grandmother's worries and rolled his head enough to look directly at Gibbs. "Boss, please?"

The conversation between the two men was silent, but obvious. Finally Gibbs nodded at his youngest boy and turned to Dr. Pitt. "Who do you have that can take care of his needs at the safe house? Somebody that you trust?"

Brad had already known it was a losing battle, but he'd had to try for appearance's sake. Now he just shook his head. "I've got two weeks of vacation coming, so I guess I'm spending it at your safe house instead of on a beach in the Bahamas."


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N - When I write a chapter of a story, I often think of some of my on-lines friends and how they would enjoy certain things that I work into a chapter. ChannelD always was one of the first people to comment on a new chapter and she always noticed the tiny bits of humor I'd work into an otherwise serious storyline. Because of that, she was on my mind quite a bit as this chapter took shape. I was just finishing the last scene when we got the word that she'd died. It was heartbreaking to lose her and incredibly difficult to write the last few lines that were designed especially for her wonderful, quirky sense of humor. Godspeed, my friend, until we meet again.**

* * *

Jackson was quietly starting lunch when he noticed that the guard out front now had a companion. He was expecting an unscheduled shift change, remembering that the first agent's wife was less than a month from her due date. When they both obviously settled in for the duration, Jackson became concerned and walked to the family room at the back of the house where Tony and Ziva were watching the news.

Various talking heads were debating Dearing's motivations and if he was a terrorist or a true patriot, but the two recovering agents were more interested in what was going on outside. Knowing that they would try not to worry him, Jack spoke first. "Something's going on, our security is increasing."

"Yeah." Tony sounded a little distracted as he peered out through the edge of the curtain. Ziva was more direct.

"Jack, stay away from the windows. Perhaps now would be a good time to go down to the basement." Unlike Gibbs' house, the basement here was fully furnished and Ziva had already scoped out the wine cellar with the idea of making it a temporary safe room.

"Nope, whatever is going on, I'm not going to hide and let you kids deal with it on your own." Jack thumped the floor with his cane to make his point.

Tony was going to argue, but one of the agents outside started moving towards the back door. When he reached the porch, Tony threw the door open, weapon at the ready.

"Whoa, DiNozzo, don't shoot."

"Damn it, what's going on?" The gun lowered, but Tony didn't relax until the agent was inside and the door relocked.

Borrowed from Homeland Security, Agent Dowling had heard plenty about the strange group that was NCIS's top team and he knew when to joke and when to get right to the point. "I'm not sure, but the SecNav just doubled your security detail and he's bringing in some Marine snipers to watch from the roof."

Tony pulled out his phone, but Dowling shook his head. "They've ordered a complete lock down, no calls in or out. Somebody is coming to brief you in person."

"When?"

"Soon."

With nothing else to do, Jack dished up their lunch and encouraged the two agents under his care to eat. Tony wasn't interested, but Ziva reminded him that in Mossad, you take every opportunity to eat a hot meal. After all, when waiting for a possible battle you never knew when the next meal would be. He reluctantly agreed.

Jack sat down and picked up his own fork. "Since Leroy isn't here, I thought I'd fix stroganoff."

"Gibbs does not like stroganoff?" Ziva speared a piece of the meat and some noodles. It did look different than any beef stroganoff she'd ever had, with the sauce a deep red. Next to her, Tony had a strange expression on his face after taking his first bite.

"Doesn't like mine. Boy always had strange taste." Jack turned to get the butter out of the refrigerator, not seeing Ziva's shudder as she quickly swallowed.

"Are those beets I taste?"

"Yep, that's my secret ingredient. Never missed a chance to sneak some veggies into Leroy."

Tony smiled as he carefully dug out some of the sauce-free noodles from the bottom of the pile on his plate. He was pretty sure this particular dish might have been the beginnings of Gibbs' suspicious view of the world.

The sound of the garage door going up had he and Ziva on their feet and moving before Jack even realized what was going on. Weapons firmly in hand, they moved to the front window and watched as Penny carefully pulled her car in, escorted by one of the agents watching the front of the house. Once the large door was down and secured, Tony quickly moved to the access door in the house.

"Penny, Boss, what's going – Probie? Brad?" He could just watch as Dr. Pitt and Abby quickly pulled a wheelchair out of the trunk before Gibbs and the doctor lifted McGee out of the passenger seat and into the chair. McGee's face was pinched and gray as he was quickly wheeled into the house, a portable oxygen tank balanced on his lap.

Loaded down with medical supplies, Penny and Abby followed the men inside. Tony had never seen the goth so quiet. "Abs, what's wrong?"

"Let's help Dr. Pitt get Timothy settled while Gibbs talks to the rest of the team."

Abby nodded at Penny's words, but stopped in front of Gibbs. "Promise me, Gibbs."

He knew exactly what she was asking. Even if the word hadn't come down from the President, he'd already made that decision. Gibbs pulled her face close enough for a kiss to her cheek. "I promise."

Once it was the three agents and Jack left in the garage, Tony didn't waste any time. "He looks like hell, Gibbs. What possible reason would you let him leave the hospital?"

In answer, Gibbs tossed him the phone and seconds later Tony as staring at the picture Dearing had sent to Gibbs. Looking over his shoulder at it, Ziva gasped. "How did he get past security?"

"Oh, he's been working as a janitor at the hospital, probably for days."

"What?" Horrified, Tony stared at his boss. "How did he manage that?"

"Hell if I know, DiNozzo." Moving into the living room, Gibbs started at the beginning and explained everything he knew so far of the day's events. By the time he was finished, Tony was pacing.

"He's got someone on the inside at the hospital, that's the only way he could have pulled it off."

"Not necessarily, Tony." Ziva thought about how Mossad would have gotten someone into a secure setting. "Would not a skilled hacker be able to break into the hospital's computer? Dearing has been able to get into MTAC, remember."

"Maybe." Tony glanced over at Gibbs before continuing. "But he has to have some sort of accomplice since Penny was talking to someone on the phone while Dearing was with McGee."

"Tony's right and we need to figure out all the players." Gibbs swayed slightly and Tony caught his arm and pushed him into a chair.

"What's the next step, Boss? Has this safe house been compromised?" Tony looked around. The big house was comfortable and would be easy to defend, but they weren't ready quite yet for a fight.

"For tonight it's safer than any of our other options. We have to assume that Dearing knows about any and all of the Agency safe houses."

Ziva thought about the possibilities. "We need to check the cars for tracking devices."

"Agreed, Vance and Fornell will be here soon with a scanner."

Gibbs' answer reassured Tony, but there were other ways to track the movements of the team. "Could Dearing have followed Penny? She's not trained to look for stuff like that."

It was a possibility the older man couldn't ignore. "Dearing's been still at the hospital when she would leave for the evening, but..."

"But he has an accomplice." Tony finished for him with a serious expression.

-NCIS-

"Do you... think I'm nuts for..." Tim had to stop talking to catch his breath, but Brad understood the question.

"Medically, I certainly would have preferred to keep you in the hospital for a few more weeks, but I understand your decision – and as long as you follow my instructions and don't push it too hard, we should be able to manage your recovery here."

"Thanks... Dr. Pitt."

Brad pointed a finger at his patient, smiling to lessen the sting. "No more talking tonight. Since you're on a regular oxygen system instead of the pressurized support, I want you to just breathe without any extra strain."

With the barest of nods, Tim's eyes drifted closed as the IV of painkillers Brad was starting did its trick. As he checked the lines and taped them securely to Tim's arm, Penny bent over to study her grandson closer. She still wasn't convinced they'd done the right thing.

"We could have demanded more security at the hospital."

"We could have." Finished momentarily with his patient, Brad sat back and turned his attention to his grandmother. "Under the circumstances, I could have made the argument to use the Presidential medical unit at Walter Reed."

"Then why didn't you?"

"Because it was more than him being safe, it was a matter of him feeling safe." Brad reached out and laid a hand on Penny's arm. "Worrying about Dearing being the next man to walk through his hospital room door would have put more strain on his recovery than moving him here. Here, he's got his whole team surrounding him and he knows they won't let Dearing get past them."

Deep down, Penny knew the doctor was right. She'd seen Tim in a medicated sleep often since she'd arrived in DC, but this time he looked finally peaceful as the pain lines eased off his face. "I hate this. In my heart, I'm a pacifist, but I want that man dead."

"Gibbs already promised." Now that Brad was done for the moment, Abby staked her claim to a spot right next to the bed, allowing her to lay her head next to Tim's. "He always keeps his promises."

-NCIS-

Vance and Fornell arrived in a SUV loaded down with the rest of the supplies on Dr. Pitt's list. Short of emergency surgery, all of McGee's medical needs could now be met at the safe house. Fornell and one of the agents from Vance's security team started scanning the cars while Vance escorted the nurse he and the SecNav had hand picked to assist Dr. Pitt.

With the resources of NCIS stretched so tight, one of Vance's regular guards had been replaced by a rule bound member of the SecNav's personal security team. He shook his head as they moved into the garage to check the car that Penny had been driving. "Protocol states that the potential targets should be separated. The kid should have been sent to another hospital under an assumed name and the rest of the targets scattered across the country."

Fornell barely managed to contain his laughter, but he did snort. "Yeah, well, I'll let you tell that to Gibbs. Just let me get out of the way."

"He's got that much control over them?"

"Nope, they've got that much faith in him."

Inside the house Vance followed the nurse into McGee's room and, after the introductions, he moved to Tim's bedside. Giving Penny a slight smile and nod, he turned his attention to McGee. The noise had wakened the younger man.

The eyes opened to just a slit, but Vance could see the confused green eyes. He reached out and straightened the blankets. "Easy, Tim, you're safe."

McGee struggled against the exhaustion for a moment, but seeing Abby's sleeping face next to him settled him down almost instantly. Vance watched him sleep for a moment before straightening up. He had more information for Gibbs, information that wasn't going to sit well with the other man.

-NCIS-

Fornell found Gibbs pacing in the living room, his father watching him closely. "Well, the cars are clear, if that helps."

"What would help would be knowing how he got past your people, Fornell."

"Mistakes were made."

"Really?"

Wincing at the sarcasm, Tobias tried again. "We relied too much on the computer database at Bethesda, assumed that anyone already in the system would have been cleared. When Dearing hacked in with his false ID, he backdated it far enough that our checks didn't pick up on it. I know what you think of apologies, but I am sorry, Jethro. He out maneuvered us."

"He had his hands on my man. Tim was helpless and Dearing touched him."

Years ago, the two men had had a similar conversation, only reversed. Tim may not be a child like Emily had been, but his injuries made him even more unable to defend himself. "I get it, I really do."

"Still doesn't explain how he managed to forge such a perfect replica of the employee badge."

"No, but this might." At the sound of Vance's voice, Fornell and Gibbs turned around. Vance looked uncomfortable with whatever he was about to tell them. "It took a lot of pressure, but the DoD finally released Liam Dunham's records. He specialized in creating forged documents for the DoD and the CIA."

"You've got to be kidding me. And they didn't think it was important for us to know that before now?" Gibbs shoved his fingers through his hair as he paced back and forth, his limp getting worse. "Damn it, we should have been tracking him along with Dearing."

"I'll get my people on it." When Gibbs glared at him, Fornell held up his hands and clarified his statement. "I'll get my best people on it."

Jack was waiting and when Fornell and Vance left, he steered his son to the kitchen table. "I know that you're not interested in eating, Leroy, but your team needs you to keep up your strength."

Still thinking about everything that had happened that day, Gibbs let his dad push him into a chair. It was only when Jack set a plate in front of him that he objected. "Stroganoff, Dad, really?"


End file.
